Bonds Of Brotherhood
by rower4life
Summary: Nick is hot on the trail of our favorite demon hunters but what happens when our favorite math professor is in the wrong place at the wrong time. Can Don and Dean shed their differences and work together? Numb3rsxSupernatural. Angst, Protective Brother
1. Chapter 1

**Title: Bonds Through Brotherhood**

**Characters: Dean, Sam, Seeth, Don, Charlie, Megan, David, Colby (pre-Janus list), Alan, Nick**

**Disclaimers: I don't own Numb3rs or Supernatural, if I did I wouldn't be writing fan fiction, I'd be too busy with Don, Dean, and Sam. The original characters are my own though and any semblance to real life events are entirely coincidental. I'm not making any money either.**

**Summary: Nick is hot on the trail of our favorite demon hunters but what happens when our favorite math professor is in the wrong place at the wrong time. Can Don and Dean shed their differences and work together? Numb3rsxSupernatural. Angst, Protective Brother**

**Warnings: Character angst, swearing, violence, and Dean's thoughts on the FBI!**

**So here it is, a sequel to Love Is All that Matters. It shouldn't be entirely necessary to read the first one first but it would help. I couldn't decide if I wanted to do a sequel or a crossover so I thought I would do both. Please read and review. Thank you so much and I hope you enjoy.**

**This takes place before season 3 of supernatural and before Janus List of Numb3rs but after we meet Dwayne Carter. **

**December 4****th**** at 9:00pm **

The hotel room's walls might have been white at one point in time but the years of dirt, dust and smoke build up had covered them in ugly brown stains and a film of grime. The faded red beds sheets were rough and scratchy from years of washing with detergent. Water spots dotted the brown carpet and the fabric on the furniture was full of holes, the stuffing exploding out of them. It was just another flea bitten motel with faulty wiring in the ceiling that caused the lights to dim unexpectedly and the air conditioning to drop to fifty degrees at night.

Despite the bad hotel room it wasn't the thing that was driving Sam over the edge. He was relaxing, well at least laying down, on one of the bed mite ridden beds. Rubbing his hands over his face Sam let out a loud sigh. Dean and Seeth were arguing, again. It had been seven months since the duo became a trio. The first five months had been okay, a little awkward but they had at least been quiet. Everyone had treaded softly; even Sam and Dean's normal jesting had lightened considerably. Neither of them had been sure about themselves around Seeth.

Their youngest brother had been quiet as well. He had kept to himself most of the time, helped out on the hunts but never joined them while they celebrated or took a night off. The first few weeks Seeth had even gotten his own hotel room. It took a motel with only one room available to finally break the ice. Ever since then they had slowly become the closest to a family that Winchesters ever got too. That's when the head butting started. After they had left the motel with only one room available Seeth had wanted to go back to getting his own room, Dean had said it was a waste of money. Being just as hard headed and stubborn as Dean Seeth decided that he would sleep in the car rather than share a room with them. The arguments spread from there. It started off small. Seeth would ask to use a particular gun and Dean would say no. Or Seeth would take a shower and not leave any hot water in it. Dean would go out to get food and "accidentally" order Seeth the wrong thing.

Right now they were arguing over why Seeth couldn't go with them to a certain bar. Now that Seeth had become more open and hung around them more he usually joined them at the local watering holes with his fake I.D in hand. Most places never even asked but the few times Seeth had been carded nothing ever came of it.

However, this time was different. A nasty poltergeist had settled down in Fernley, Nevada. So far there had been five deaths over the past six months. The three boys had been told by a witness to the latest murder that the cop who was investigating the killings frequented a certain bar. The plan was to go ask some questions and see if they could find out more than what the papers were printing, just a typical interview. Dean however, felt otherwise.

"Because it's not worth the risk that's why!"

"Don't give me that, we go to bars all the time!"

"We never interview cops! You're too young and they'll know it! We're already in enough trouble with the law without taking unnecessary risks!"

"Well that's not my fault is it?!"

"Shut up, both of you!" Sam had finally cracked. For a half hour his two brothers had been going around and around with this argument and it wasn't getting them anywhere. Sam used to be afraid when Dean and Seeth got into fights that one of them would storm out and not come back. Now all he wanted was quiet and if he was the one that would have to leave in order to get it then so be it.

"You can both stay here. Seeth, Dean's right, you look your age and with a cop it's an unnecessary risk. Dean," Sam paused, trying hard to think of a way to keep his other brother behind as well, "your acting like your under twenty one so you can stay here as well. I'm going by myself," Sam said definitively as he grab his coat and walked out the door. He couldn't help but slam it shut behind him.

"Look what you did now," Dean said after Sam left room.

"Oh please, you're the one that started it," Seeth shot back, facing back towards Dean after he had watched Sam walk out the door.

In just a few seconds the two men were back to arguing like kids over a toy.

**December 4****th**** at 9:55pm**

Officer Kuts had been a dead end. Sam had thrown questions at the new cop for over twenty minutes and the guy hadn't said a word. This was the man's first case and his loyalty to his job was still sky high. Nothing could have gotten that kid to talk. When Sam had pulled out five twenties to persuade him Kuts had insisted that he pay for the drinks, not Sam. With an unbelieving look on his face Sam had said thank you and walked off.

It wasn't before Sam had gotten into the Impala and started it that he realized he wasn't quite ready to go back to the motel. Knowing Dean and Seeth the two were still arguing and would be until they went to bed. So Sam decided to go back into the bar and have a drink or two. He couldn't get drunk because eventually he would have to leave but it would be relaxing to just sit there and drink a cold one. It felt a little weird to be walking into a bar alone to have a drink. This wasn't something he normally did; this was more Dean's avenue. But the minute the ice cold beer ran down his throat the weirdness left Sam and he began to enjoy himself.

For a few minutes Sam just sat in the corner watching the other patrons in the bar and nursed his drink. He watched a couple hold hands and smile at each other but looked away when he started to think of Jessica. His eyes became drawn to a few men who were playing pool on the other side of the room. Dean was the avid pool player but by studying these guys for a few moments Sam decided he could easily cream them. They were running low on cash so Sam figured the game might be a good idea. He walked over to the loud table.

"You guys have room for one more?" Sam asked in his best nonchalant manner.

"This ain't a little boys game kid go back to drinking your chocolate milk," a big surly man replied gruffly to Sam.

"I've got two hundred." Pulling out the wad of bills, Sam smiled when he saw the guys' interest perk up.

"Fine, winner will match you and it's all or nothing," a man bigger than the first giant replied.

"Perfect," Sam said. Getting them to let him join in had been too simple, his confidence was soaring with each second as the guys' lousy game proceed, of course it had nothing to do with the slight buzz that was now coursing through his body. At the moment it was easy to see why Dean enjoyed doing these things.

The match ended and giant number two had won. Sam set up the balls and broke. Two of the solid colored balls went right in. On his second shot two more went in. Sam stood up and gave the man a grin. A slight wrinkle appeared on his opponent's face but Sam gave him credit, his confidence recovered quickly and he was able to sink one of his own balls. The game went on for another ten minutes and while he hadn't been as easy to beat as Sam had first imagined, the giant did eventually lose.

"Thanks for the game guys, have a nice night," Sam said quickly as he gathered up the four hundred dollar pile of cash and moved towards the exit. The two men wouldn't be happy and Sam didn't want to push his luck by sticking around and finding out if he could take the two men on. As he opened up the bar door to head out he was to busy shoving the money in his pocket to notice the man coming in and ran smack into him.

"Sorry," Sam said to the guy sincerely but then became a little upset when the guy just scowled at him. 'Rude,' Sam thought to himself.

It wasn't until he got in the car that Sam realized the guy he had run into looked familiar. He was certainly well traveled so he could know the man from anywhere but Sam had a different feeling about him. The man had some importance, he was more than just someone that had seen or spoken a few sentences to on their travels.

"Who in the hell was that?" Sam asked out loud, talking to himself.

Then it hit him, he knew exactly where he had seen that man before. Sam sped up and swore as he prayed that the man hadn't recognized him.

**December 4****th**** at 9:00pm**

Don pulled into the driveway of his brother's house. It was nine o'clock in the evening and it had been an extremely long past two weeks. The caseload at work seemed to never have an ending. There had been investigations after investigations. None of them had been credible or worthwhile and all but two had been turned over to the county police. A perfect example of the crap that they had been forced to look into was Ms. Druitz's phone call. She had called the local authorities at seven o'clock in the evening claiming that the high profile criminal who was currently plastered all over the news had just knocked over her trash can. Since the FBI had been requested to be notified of any possible leads concerning the suspect the call had been routed to his office and he had had to send Colby and David to go take a look. His fellow agents said that the criminal ended up being a thirty pound stray dog who had been startled. The two agents then spent the next twenty five minutes chasing the animal around the old woman's backyard until the animal control finally showed up. Both men had returned to the office swearing under their breath and covered in mud from the recent rain. Don had mercifully sent them home for the evening.

The two that the FBI had kept went to another team, his was spared. That didn't mean there wasn't any paperwork though. For the past three days he had been stuck at his desk from seven in the morning until nine at night. Just an hour ago he had finished the last reports. Sometimes being an FBI agent could be one of the most boring jobs ever. Paper work may be mundane but it was tiring and Don just didn't have the energy to drive the extra fifteen minutes to his apartment. Besides, his dad had mentioned meatloaf and Don could never resist a good meatloaf.

When he pulled open the door to Charlie's home a wide grin spread across his face when he recognized the smell of his favorite dish wafting over him. "Where are you guys?!" Don yelled as he took off his thin FBI jacket that was doing little to protect him against this unusually cold December night. Next came his keys, gun, cuffs, and badge. He noticed the pack that was laying by the door. Looked like someone was leaving for a little while.

"In here Donny!"

Don followed his father's voice into the dining room where Charlie was sitting down at the table and Alan had just gotten up.

"I'll grab you a plate, just a second, go ahead and sit down," Alan said before disappearing into the kitchen.

He went to feign hurt feelings over his dad's assumption that he was here for dinner but stopped when he heard his belly growl loudly. Don listened to his famished stomach and sat down.

Charlie let out a laugh when he heard his brother's stomach clear across the dining room table.

"What?" Don asked at his brother's short burst of laughter.

"Nothing," Charlie replied innocently but clearly enjoying the big bite of mashed potatoes and meatloaf he was shoving into his mouth at the moment.

"Chuck," Donny said in a sarcastic manner at his brother's attempt to tease him.

"Donald," Charlie quickly shot back.

"Boys lets try to have one family dinner with it turning into a circus," Alan said as he returned to the table with a plate full of food in one hand and a tall glass of milk in another. He laid both in front of Don before sitting back down in his own seat.

Don noticed the glass of milk and gave it a strange look, like he wasn't quite sure what this white liquid was and then gave his dad the same questioning stare.

"It's good for you now drink it. You can have a beer after dinner," Alan said, knowing exactly why Don was looking at him weirdly. His son was by no means an alcoholic but after a long day at work Don's favorite thing to do was have a beer and watch baseball.

Don decided to let it go when his stomach rumbled again and began eating the delicious food that was before him. After a couple bits Don remembered the pack he had seen in the hallway. "So who's leaving?"

"I am. I'm going hiking over the weekend, I haven't gone in a long time," Charlie responded in between bites.

"Alone?" Don asked. Usually Charlie went with Larry but the "unique" professor was currently orbiting Earth right now.

"Yeah, usually Larry comes but since he's gone I'd figured it would be a great opportunity to just get away from everything. I finally finished grading the finals and that wasn't fun, I need a break."

"Were are you going and for how long?" Don asked, not realizing he was beginning to sound more like a concerned father. It wasn't like their dad wasn't sitting right there and had more than likely already asked the mandated worried parent questions.

"I'm leaving tomorrow evening after work for Mt. Lowe Railway Loop and I'll be back the next day in the evening dad," Charlie said, putting a little emphasis on the dad.

"I just care about my little Chuck," Don replied back in a sarcastically sweet voice.

"Boys, no circus," Alan reminded them before Charlie could retort back.

**All right, here it is the first chapter. It took me forever to figure out what I wanted to do. I wanted to do a Numb3rs Supernatural crossover so bad but because I got feedback and people actually wanted a sequel I didn't want to let you guys down either. So here it is, a combination of both. I'm hoping that it's not going to seem like I'm trying to cover too much, what do you guys think? Anyway, please read and review. My main concern is trying to keep the characters sounding like themselves so feedback on that would be extremely appreciative. I'm going to try to update at least once a week. The updates would be encouraged by reviews, hint hint. Thanks a bunch guys and I hope you enjoy.**


	2. Chapter 2

**December 4****th**** at 11:00pm**

The Impala was eating up the road as it sped through the night. Even though the city's lights had been left behind there wasn't much of a difference. Millions of stars littered the otherwise black sky. Out here in the desert there were no artificial lights or smog to cover up the natural beauty. The headlights illuminated the road in front of the car but one could also make out the outlines and shapes of cacti, brush, and even the occasional coyote which would be accompanied by two piercing yellow eyes.

Dean wasn't paying attention to any of it of though, too distracted and filled with adrenaline to notice the beauty of the desert night. Instead he was shifting his eyes between Sam, and the rearview mirror where not only could he see Seeth but also another car that he was pretty sure had been following them since they left the city, in fact he was positive it had been following them. The car was staying about two hundred yards behind them, not speeding up or slowing down, just driving at the same exact speed. That wasn't normal, only someone who was tailing would be behaving in that manner. Maybe he was just being paranoid. Glancing over at Sam again he saw his younger brother bouncing his right knee up and down, obviously just as on edge as he was.

"You're sure it was him?" Dean asked one more time. Sam had come busting into the hotel room shouting at them to pack up because they needed to leave now. In a very quick explanation Sam had said that he had bumped into one of Nick's men.

That was all it took, for seven months the three Winchester (Seeth had decided to switch his last name from Colbert to Winchester) men had cautiously kept an eye out to make sure they weren't being followed. Bobby, Ellen, Ash, and Joe helped them out by keeping tabs on where Nick and Gordon or their gangs could be. Most of the hunters that passed through the roadhouse didn't know, or wouldn't tell but a few said they had seen them here and there. As a precaution they had developed the habit of always having a back up hunt, that way if they were found they could leave at a moment's notice with a destination in mind. This also helped them because they could study the route to their destination and the area that way they would have an advantage over anyone trying to get them. At the moment they where headed to L.A.

"Yes, it was the same guy that shot me in the leg when Nick first got us," Sam said, a little exasperated at Dean's show of doubt. This was the fifth time that Dean had questioned what he had seen. His older brother had even gone as far as calling him paranoid once. Sam had been quick to point out that he wasn't the one driving like there was a ghost on their tail.

"Just making sure," Dean replied, taking notice of the slight undertone of irritation in Sam's voice. He looked through the rearview mirror again and frowned when he saw that the car was still following them. Dean also couldn't help noticing the look on Seeth's face. Ever since Sam had charged into the hotel room with the news Seeth hadn't said a word. He had packed his stuff and gotten in the car before they had even noticed. Now that he had slowed down a little bit Dean could see the kid was shutting down. Seeth was staring downwards at the floor but his mind wasn't there, you could see it in his eyes. Not only was Seeth mentally gone right now but Dean could tell his body was wound up, as if he was ready to run at any moment.

"Seeth," Dean said softly, not wanting to startle him. Seeth didn't move a muscle though, didn't even blink.

"Seeth," Dean said it a little louder this time. Still no movement but Sam had taken notice.

By the time Dean had said Seeth's name a second time Sam had shifted in his seat so that he was facing their youngest brother. Sam had noticed the lack of talking but just now realized how panicked Seeth seemed to be. Slowly so he didn't scare him Sam touched Seeth's shoulder ever so lightly. Seeth jumped two feet off the seat and slammed his head against the roof of the car.

"Sorry," Sam said quickly as he withdrew his hand.

Seeth didn't seem mad or upset, instead he looked terrified.

Dean had been watching the little scene through the rearview mirror and had even jumped a little when Seeth had. "Seeth, are you okay?" Dean's tone was clearly laced with worry. The two of them may fight quite a bit but it was always over stupid stuff and neither one of them ever meant anything by it. When it came to other things though they were inseparable, they even played pranks on Sam sometimes.

"Yeah," Seeth murmured quietly before going back to staring off into space with his head hung downwards.

Sam exchanged a worried look with Dean, this wasn't good. It had taken a long time to get Seeth out of his shell and now he was retreating back into it, this wasn't good at all.

"Yeah, I know," Dean said in response to Sam's glance. Seeth and Dean may be close but it was Sam and Dean that had the whole ESP thing going on. Glancing in his rear view mirror Dean let out a short, quiet "damn it" when he saw that the car was still behind them.

"What?" Sam asked.

Dean was about to respond when the car suddenly veered onto an exit and drove out of the sight. "Nothing," Dean replied, visibly more relaxed now that they weren't being followed. He didn't take much notice of the car that pulled onto the highway a couple miles down the road though.

**7 hours later**

**December 5****th**** at 6:00am **

The cool desert night had conceded to the bright Los Angeles sun which made the current fifty five degrees more than tolerable. There was a slight breeze and the sun was warming and loosening Dean's tired achy joints from driving straight for the past seven and a half hours. Right now he was pumping some gas into his beloved gas guzzler while Sam was inside the 7-11 buying breakfast, Seeth was still sitting in the backseat. Other than the two one-word answers to "Are you hungry" and "Do you have to use the restroom" Seeth had staid quiet. He hadn't moved in at all during the drive from what Dean could tell and he hadn't relaxed even the slightest bit. Dean had hoped that once they reached L.A. Seeth would calm down a little but no such luck.

Dean could see that Sam was now paying for the food at the counter. As he watched Sam walk out he couldn't notice how the cashier stared at Sam and took a quick glance at Dean before quickly averting his eyes. Shaking his head and chalking it up too sleep deprivation Dean thought to himself, 'You're getting paranoid in your old age.'

"You ready?" Sam asked Dean as he climbed into the car with six ham and cheese bagels in his arms, two for each of them; even though Seeth had said he wasn't hungry.

"Yeah," Dean replied as he screwed on the gas cap and climbed into the car. As he got in the car Dean could swear the cashier inside had just been staring at them again. Weird people, they were in L.A. after all.

**December 5****th**** at 1:00pm**

"Don't bother, it's broke," Colby said to his boss when he saw Don trying to get coffee out of the vending machine.

"What do you mean it's broke?" Don asked with venom in his voice. It had been a long day and if Don was going to make it for five more hours until six o'clock he needed coffee.

"Sorry, happened this morning. Supposedly the guy who is coming in to fix the coffee machine in the break room can fix this one as well," Colby said before walking off.

'This is ridiculous,' Don thought to himself. Nothing was going right today. After two weeks of exhausting, fruitless work him and his team had finally got a good case only to be taken off of it an hour later. Instead they were given a new assignment, one that was coming over the fax machine now.

Don Eppes looked down at the sheets of paper that had just finished coming through. It was a Sam and Dean Winchester's rap sheets and prison photos. He had heard of the notorious Winchesters but that had been about it. He knew they were wanted in various states for just as many different crimes. Credit card fraud, breaking and entering, murder, robbing a bank and grave desecration were just a few. The two men traveled under aliases that were often rock stars. Don found that interesting and more than a little unique.

Earlier in the day a tip had been called into the local police by a gas station attendant claiming Sam Winchester had come into the store and bought some breakfast sandwiches and drinks along with gas, paid in cash. The local police had swarmed the place but by the time they had gotten there the boys had been long gone. Burt, the cashier at the 7-11 said he had waited ten minutes before calling the police because he wanted to make sure the Winchesters were away from him, he didn't want to get hurt. The county cops had then handed over the information to the FBI and the now here Don was, reading about two men who seemed a little different than your average criminals. He didn't know what it was but the more he read about these two men the more Don sensed something was off. If asked to explain it all he would have been able to say was that his intuition was kicking in.

Taking the case hadn't even been all that bad until Don found out who was currently on a plane en route to L.A. and would be arriving in two hours, Special Agent Hendrickson. It was an understatement to say that him and the agent did not get along. Four years ago Don and his team had been working on a case for a month before finally getting a major tip. Hendrickson had decided to tag along and when they had cornered the three gang members he had opened fire unnecessarily and had started a gun fight. Don had been shot in his arm and Terri, his old partner, had been grazed by a bullet on her leg. Never before in his life had he wanted to punch another man so badly.

"Who are they?"

Don looked up sharply at the sudden question coming from right beside them. He had been so deep into his thoughts about the how much he hated the other agent that he hadn't heard his brother walk up behind him. Charlie was staring down at the fax he had in his hand and the stats he had pulled up on the computer.

Don sighed and leaned forward on his chair, swiveling to face his brother. "Sam and Dean Winchester, they were spotted in the area and I'm going to be helping the lead agent in their case track them down."

"Agent Hendrickson?" Charlie asked before he could stop himself.

"How do you know him?" Don asked, sitting up straighter and more than a little curious.

Charlie could have kicked himself for being so candid. He had managed to keep it a secret for six months and now he had blown it. 'I guess I can't keep a secret,' Charlie said to himself. Don was still staring at him and Charlie knew he would give in sooner or later so he went ahead and answered. "I tried helping him track the two men down earlier this year."

"What?!" Don asked, a little louder than necessary. Then in a quieter tone, "Why didn't you tell me?"

Feeling about two inches tall Charlie responded meekly, "Because I knew you didn't like him so I didn't want to make you mad." Charlie hoped his brother would understand.

Almost yelling at Charlie again Don regained control just in time and realized that yelling would do no good. Besides his brother hadn't meant any harm by it and if he was able to help catch a criminal then Charlie should help, no matter who the agent was. So instead of responding in a not so nice way Don got down to business, "You weren't able to find them?" Don was just as shocked to hear that his brother's math hadn't resulted in a solved case as he had been to hear that his brother had helped Hendrickson.

"No. The math worked but something about the information I was getting was wrong. I had been given all the possible locations that Sam and Dean had been too but I wasn't able to come up with a predication as to where they would be next. Nothing is random but they come as close to it as I've ever seen before," Charlie said. The sudden shift of emotions from angry to calm and controlled told Charlie that Don was still mad but dealing with it and would soon be over it entirely.

"Well what do you think was wrong?" Don asked, pulling up the file that listed all the known and possible locations the two men had been too. "Do you think there were too many possible locations and not enough hard facts as to where they had been?"

"No, I even ran the data with only the known locations and I still couldn't come up with a pattern. I think the motive that Hendrickson was supplying me with was wrong."

"What do you mean the motive?" Don asked, turning around to look at Charlie again who was now seated in Colby's chair across from him.

"Hendrickson is telling me their motive is money, murder, places to hide, things along that line but none of them make sense with the math."

"Well what could their motives possibly be then?" Don asked more to himself than Charlie.

Charlie responded anyway, "That's your job isn't it." Now Charlie wanted to pat himself on the back, he had actually come up with a good comeback.

"Funny Chuck," Don responded.

"Hey now, no circus," Charlie said, doing his best impersonation of their father.

"Whatever you say dad." Don suddenly remembered that Charlie was supposed to be hiking and he was also holding a folder in his hand. "Why aren't you out hiking and what's that?" Don asked, nodding his head towards the manila folder.

"It's some financial data that Tates had asked me to look over. And I thought I would drop it off before I left."

"Well here, he's out of the office right now, I'll put it on his desk for you. You better get going if your going to get a good start before nightfall." Don said as he grabbed the folder from Charlie and laid it on his keyboard so he would remember to put it on Agent Tates's desk.

"Your right, well see you later," Charlie said, getting up and heading towards the elevator.

"Hey Charlie, stay warm!" Don shouted to his retreating brother's back.

Charlie raised a hand up in response and stepped into the open elevator. It was December and most people would find it strange to know he was going to spend tonight sleeping outside in a tent but Charlie liked it. There weren't too many people on the mountain trails during this time of the year, especially over night. He needed quiet right now, he needed time to relax and unwind and a deserted mountain would be the perfect place to do it.

**Thanks for reading and please remember to review.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Thanks for all the reviews, here is the next chapter. I am so sorry for the slow update, I didn't mean to take that long. I was going to put more into this chapter but I wanted to get something up for you guys as soon as possible. I promise to have another chapter up by the weekend. I have things planned out for the next two or three but I just got to get them down. Anyway I hope you enjoy and please remember to review, I'm really appreciating all the great things that you guys are saying.**

**December 6****th**** at 12:30am**

It was about midnight, although no one had told the neighborhood that. Every house was lit up and car lights were on everywhere. Friday nights were never quiet and tonight was no exception. The parties were on and the music thumped from every house along the college street. People were running from house to house, some were half naked and in almost every hand there was a beer or plastic cup sloshing with some other intoxicating drink.

One car that drove down the street was not playing loud music and did not have the windows rolled down out of which the occupants were screaming at friends it passed by. While nobody would ever call the car quiet, the din of drunk students shouting and music blaring from every speaker within three blocks drowned out the loud roar that usually turned people's heads. The Impala was unnoticed for probably the first time in its life.

Although he was driving by without turning heads Dean didn't seem to notice. This being ignored was not going to last long. After fleeing from Nevada Dean, Sam, and Seeth had laid low for the day and rested but started out the first night they were in town. There was no reason to just sit around and twiddle their thumbs. So he had dropped Sam and Seeth off at a murder girl's house and Dean was going to check out her sorority, alone, where there were tons of hot girls living. It seemed as if everything was going just his way this time.

First off, the case had led them to an actual city, with a population more than two thousand. That was one thing Dean could never understand about their job, why did the baddies always want to terrorize small towns? What had rednecks done to deserve that, besides the whole marry your sister thing, that was just gross. Then the latest murder, which just happened to have been last night was a college girl. Not that Dean was glad she got murdered. But what it did mean was he would get a chance to interview her friends, her roommates, her very hot roommates if his luck continued. Not only that his morally correct brother was investigating her parents house where she had gotten killed with his other sulking brother. Normally he wouldn't have cared if Seeth came along; usually Seeth would hang back and let him have his fun. The youngest Winchester hadn't joined in on the girl hunts yet but at least he didn't try to give Dean a speech every time a girl looked at them, unlike Saint Sammy. However, at the moment Seeth was a buzz kill. The kid had still not spoken more than five words and Dean was glad that Sam had taken Seeth with him. Perfect Sam could deal with moody Seeth tonight.

As he slowed down to park alongside the street Dean smiled, tonight was going to be good. The instant he opened the Impala's door a wave of music, screams, laughs, shouts, and every obnoxious noise you could think of hit him with the force of a semi. Although it was only ten o'clock there was already trash littering the yards of the small houses and there were even two or three knocked out students on the lawn. 'Somebody can't hold their liquor,' Dean thought as he stepped over one such person. He made his way up the path and seeing as the door to the house was open Dean took a step inside.

A pretty petite red head came up to him, half walking, half stumbling with a two cups in her hand, "Can I help you?!" She had to scream at the top of her lungs so Dean could hear her.

Dean grinned.

**SNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSN**

The house where Dean had dropped them off at was old but well kept. A white wall surrounded the typical Spanish style home, complete with the tile roofing and the stucco walls. An archway led to the backyard which Sam and Seeth walked towards, hoping that breaking through the back door would be less conspicuous then the front. Even in the dark Sam could make out the hundreds over flowers and that surrounded the tiled courtyard. Sam was sure that the house was beautiful and almost wished he could have seen it in the daytime. Most of the houses they ended up searching were shacks that looked like they could fall down with the slightest breeze.

Sam couldn't help but think about how long he would get to explore the inside of the house while he was picking the lock. It had been a mistake but Sam had suggested Dean go interview the girls that Lucy Yetts, the murdered girl, had lived with. Little did he know that Lucy had indeed lived in a sorority, Seeth and he would be stuck here for at least two hours. 'At least it will give us an enough time to do a thorough walk through,' Sam said to himself, trying to remain positive.

It had been Seeth's mood that had prompted such generosity from Sam. Dean and Seeth got along fairly well; he even ended up being the brunt of their jokes and pranks sometimes. However, there were also times when the two of them would get into fights. Sam and Dean had only ever been in one real "I want to do bodily harm to you" fist fight in the twenty three years they had been brothers. So far Dean and Seeth had been in three. The reason for this was a deadly combination of the two mans' inability to say sorry, admit they were wrong, or back down. While Seeth may have Dean's sarcastic tongue, and desire to keep things inside, he shared Sam's moodiness.

Slowly Sam and Dean were learning what would set Seeth off but it had only been seven months and they had a long way to go before Seeth trusted them completely or truly opened up. Sometimes it was something that one of them said; other times it could be something on television but it always had something to do with what he had gone through his whole life before he had met Sam and Dean. When these things occurred Seeth would get in these moods, like the one he was in now, where he wouldn't speak, wouldn't even look at anybody. Dean would be able to handle it for a few hours but then he would get frustrated and start shouting. He never meant any of the things he said, Sam knew that and Seeth would realize it later on after Dean had apologized but at the time it would send Seeth over the edge. Seeth would start shouting and Dean and him would get in each other's faces. It was always Seeth who threw the first punch and it was always Dean who ended it shortly after. Usually by the next day the two of them would be friends.

That was exactly what Sam was trying to avoid when he suggested that Dean go to the college campus and Seeth and himself check out where the girl actually died. Sam was able to handle Seeth better, he didn't get as frustrated.

"Alright you take the main floor, I'll take the top, the girl died in her bedroom upstairs but there might be some hints as to what it was that killed her downstairs. If you seeing any files go through them, see if you can maybe find out what the parents did. So far all the victims have been families and the fathers were lawyers, judges, or someone to do with the court system," Sam said to Seeth as they walked in the house.

Seeth said nothing or made no indication other than heading off in his own direction, whipping out an EMF meter as he went along.

Sam shook his own head at Seeth's lack of response and walked up the stairs.

An hour later Sam was back downstairs shifting through files and writing down any names they deemed important. The father, it turns out, is a lawyer and thankfully for them he kept many of his files at home. They had been going through the three cabinets for about fifteen minutes when Seeth finally spoke. Sam almost jumped, not accepting to hear anything come out of Seeth.

"I'm going to grab something to drink from their fridge, do you want anything?"

Sam stopped flicking through the papers and turned his head at Seeth to give him an, "I can't believe what you just said look." Part of that look was for the outrageous offer and the fact that Seeth would go rummaging through someone's fridge, the other half of that look came from the fact that Seeth had actually said more than three words at one time.

"They have a huge fridge, it's not like they're going to miss one soda," Seeth said in reply. Sam continued to give him the incredulous stare and Seeth stared back. After a second Sam's phone rang and when his brother broke eye contact to answer it Seeth walked out.

"Yeah," Sam said, turning back to find Seeth gone. He let out a loud sigh.

"So, I didn't find anything, the girl was clean and everyone loved her. I'm thinking it probably had something to do with her father like the others," Dean said, his gaze following the jean clad behind that just walked by.

Sam rolled his eyes as he went back to fishing through the files, he knew exact what Dean was thinking right now and it had nothing to do with the case. Besides did Dean think he was deaf and couldn't hear the loud music and screams in the background? "Well you can come pick us up. The father was a lawyer and by the time you get here I would have gone through the files and gotten some names, then we can compare them with the other men's papers. Dean…Dean!" Sam shouted when he didn't get a response. There was probably some girl leaning against a table flashing him her best come and get me smile and he was giving his best right back at her.

Dean didn't hear Sam right away. He had tuned his brother out at about the point where Sam had suggested he come and get them. There was currently a nice brunette standing over by the pool table in tight jeans and a revealing tank top. Man, she had the best smile ever too. When Dean heard Sam scream through the phone he allowed his attention to be diverted.

Sam was still waiting for an answer when he thought he heard something, with his luck Seeth had accidentally broken a very expensive, old glass object. He was about to go in and investigate when he heard Dean's ridiculous answer come over the phone.

"Can't you call a taxi or something, you have cash right?" Dean was still smiling at the brunette as he spoke to Sam. He did not want to leave anytime soon, especially to go and pick up his two mood killing brothers.

Sam was just ready to open his mouth when he heard Seeth scream from the kitchen.

"Sam, run!"

Even with his attention currently elsewhere and the loud noises Dean was able to hear someone scream on the other end, it sounded like Seeth and it sounded like trouble. Then he heard a muffled thump and was pretty sure that Sam had dropped the phone. His body immediately shot up straight and his muscles tensed, ready for a fight even if it was on the other end of a telephone. "Sam!" Dean said a little loudly into the phone.

Sam dropped the phone when he heard Seeth scream, not from shock or surprise but from years of hunting instincts being engraved in him. His hand quickly drew the gun that was in the back of his pants and brought it up to eye level, taking a shooter's stance. A loud thump came right after the scream, it sounded like a body hitting the floor. Taking a few cautious steps forward, one foot in front of the other so as not to make a sound, Sam slowly made his way to the door of the study. He peered around each corner but didn't see someone or something.

"Sam, we're losing patience."

The voice was unhurried, calm, even a little happy.

Sam frowned, the voice sounded familiar. Then it hit him. The guy who he had run into at the bar was Nick's man and the voice was certainly Nick. For a split second Sam felt the urge to run but quickly dismissed it, he couldn't leave Seeth alone. So after a few more seconds of hesitation Sam swung the door open and stepped into the kitchen, gun still aiming high.

"There you are my son."

His gun swung towards the crooning voice. Sam glared at Nick when their eyes met, the bastard had grin plastered on his face. He quickly let his eyes travel down the arm that was holding a gun and saw Seeth sitting up on the floor staring at Sam. There was blood on his forehead from what looked like a pretty nasty cut. "Let him go," Sam said, not realizing just how much he sounded like Dean when he was in big brother mode.

"Put your gun down," Nick said pleasantly, he had these boys cornered and he knew it but just to make sure Sam knew it he redirected his gun's aim from Seeth's head to his leg and fired off one round before bringing back up to his youngest son's head quickly.

Seeth tried not to scream but he hadn't been able to anticipate what Nick was going to do so he wasn't able to keep his mouth closed. He grasped his leg right above the wound and clamped down hard, trying to stop the bleeding but knowing it was futile. His breathing quickened and became shallow as his body tried to shut out the pain.

To Sam's credit he only faltered in the slightest but his aim quickly corrected itself. He took a quick glance at Seeth and could see his brother trying to hold back the tears. This was just the beginning and Sam knew Nick could and probably would inflict much pain on Seeth. Still, he was reluctant to put down his only means of defense.

"Put the gun down Sam," Nick said again, still using that pleasantly sickening tone.

Sam allowed himself to think about shooting Nick one more time but knew it was futile. There were four other men in the room with them and who knew if there were more outside. So against everything his body and mind was telling him Sam slowly lowered the gun and tossed it ten feet away where one of the other men picked it up.

"Good boy Sam. Now put your hands behind your back while Pete puts on those cuffs."

Sam did as he was told while maintaining his steady glare with Nick. Dean would have been proud at Sam for playing the big brother role so well and could have easily recognized himself in Sam's face at the moment. He allowed a little grimace when the cuffs bit into wrists as they were tightened, even though he had expected it. It was the butt of the gun that slammed against his head that surprised him, although he only felt it for a second before losing consciousness.


	4. Chapter 4

**December 6****th**** at 1:30am**

"Sam!"

"Sam!" Dean shouted for the third time into the silent phone. The phone was still on and he thought he had heard a second shout in the background and the voice didn't sound like it belonged to Sam or Seeth. The yell didn't sound frightened or scared either, more like impatient. Dean stood, anxiously listening before he heard another scream. This one came from pain, Dean was sure of it. He kept the phone on but started for his car.

'When did all these people get here,' Dean thought to himself as he tried to find his way out of the packed sorority house. People were shoulder to shoulder and some wouldn't even move. A few Dean shoved pretty hard, lucky for him they were drunk and didn't notice. After a few minutes of cursing under his breath, shouting at idiots that just stood there, and not so carefully navigating his way through Dean reached the front door. He used his long strides to eat up the ground and reach his car, it paid to walk fast when you had a brother like Sam who could tip toe and still reach the destination faster than you with those long legs. Seeth wasn't short either but mercifully he was an inch shorter than Dean.

The Impala roared to life as Dean turned the key and floored the gas pedal. The car seemed to know that something was happening, some of its owners were in distress and just like Dean it was going to push all the other cars out of the way until it got where it was going.

Half way there Dean finally shut off his phone when he heard a beep signaling that his battery was almost dead. It didn't occur to him that he could be walking into a trap. His brothers were in trouble and that was all that mattered. During the drive Dean managed to slip some thoughts about who or what was behind this between concentrating on the road and not hitting anyone as he sped by. Even though it was one thirty in the morning there was still a considerable amount of traffic on the road, which could only be expected since this was L.A. Nick was the only person that Dean could think of who could be behind this. The thing that they were hunting was only supposed to be a spirit, nothing special, just your everyday vengeful spirit. Sam and Dean had dealt with hundreds of them and Seeth had seen enough to know what he was doing, there was no reason that this one should give his brothers any trouble. Plus there was the fact that Sam had run into that guy at the bar back in Nevada, he had said it was Nick's man.

"Move!" Dean shouted to himself as he got stuck behind a car doing thirty five in the forty five mile zone they were currently in. He sped up and came within inches of hitting the person's car as he honked his horn. The person finally shifted into the lane to their left and Dean could vaguely hear some choice words coming from the other car.

'Why is this taking so long, I should be there by now,' Dean thought to himself. When he had dropped Sam and Seeth off it had taken him thirty minutes to get to the college. Plus there had been more traffic earlier that night. He risked a glance down at the clock and had to take a second look when he saw that he had only been driving for fifteen minutes, it felt like it had been an hour.

Five minutes later and Dean pulled onto the street where he had dropped his brothers off. He slowed down so as not to draw attention. 'Yeah right Dean,' he said to himself a few seconds later when he saw the BMWs, Porsches, and convertibles lining the driveways of the multi million dollar homes. He drove past the home where Sam and Seeth were supposed to be and couldn't see that anything was wrong. Everything was exactly how he had seen it last. To be on the safe side Dean parked a few houses down.

Sticking close to the high walls that surrounded the houses Dean was able to stay out of any light that the street lamps were giving off. As he neared the correct house Dean realized the only way he was getting over was scaling the gate to the driveway. He would be visible to anyone laying a trap and an easy target. It was the only way though so he took a running start, grabbed hold of the wrought iron gate and sailed over it effortlessly.

As soon as his feet touched the stone driveway he darted back into the shadows of the high wall. Slowly he made his way around back and saw the door closed. Dean drew his gun before stepping out of the shadows and walked up to the house. Years of training and hunting had made his footsteps silent and the rich people's money and courtesy of keeping the door well oiled allowed him to open the door without so much as peep. You could say it was a mud room that he had stepped into, a nice mud room but the only thing that mattered was it was empty. The door on the other side of the wall was open and Dean was able to see an empty room beyond.

When he got closer though he heard something on the other side of the wall. He stopped and raised his gun. Waiting against the wall next to the door Dean's patience paid off and a person, not Sam or Seeth, walked by. Without hesitating or thinking about who else it could be Dean fell behind the guy and hit him in the middle of his head. Prepared, Dean caught the guy before he could fall to the ground and slowly lowered him down so he wouldn't alert anyone in the house when his body hit the floor.

A sharp click of a gun being cocked and the feel of cool metal pressing against his head made Dean's blood run cold. He had forgotten to keep his other senses alert, he had been so concentrated on the unconscious guy in front of him that he had tuned everything else out.

"Don't move."

The voice was shaking slightly when Dean heard it and the gun against his head wasn't staying still, it kept moving slightly. He could tell by the voice that the other man was younger and inexperienced, probably to new to all this. What was even better, the guy was nervous. Dean smiled as he raised his hands into the air and dropped the gun. Expecting, and not being disappointed, the guy to watch his gun fall to the ground Dean whirled around grab the man's wrist that held the gun with one hand and slammed the palm of his other hand into the man's face. Not even giving the guy a second to think Dean twisted the guy's wrist until he heard it snap, the man screamed and the gun dropped from his hand. Almost simultaneously Dean swept his right leg and hooked it around the guy's knees, causing him to fall to the ground. The whole action sequence probably took three to four seconds and the fallen man was still clutching his nose when Dean aimed his retrieved gun at his head.

"Where are my brothers?" Dean demanded, making sure to stay out of range of the other man's legs, not that the guy would even think to use them, he was defiantly new.

"I…I don't know," the nineteen year old kid said, trying to sound brave but failing miserably.

"Where are they?!" This time Dean kicked the man on the ground in the ribs, hard enough to make a statement but not hard enough to cause any permanent damage. Dean wasn't a killer but if he had to he would go further in order to get his brothers back.

"Alright, alright, please don't hurt me," the kid pleaded. "They took them up to Mt. Lowe, Rail… Railway Loop. There's an old ranger house up there, they're keeping them there."

Dean didn't allow the smile in his eyes to reach his face, no need to let the kid know he was pleased. "Who has them, is it Nick?" Dean asked, this time not shouting but just as sternly.

"Yes, yes. There are eight men up there, I don't know anything else, please don't hurt me."

"You have cuffs right, you were supposed to wait for me and then take me up there?" Dean asked, a plan now formulating in his head. He had information and now he could think.

"Ye… yes," the kid said a little more with uncertainty then fear.

"Good, put them on your partner over there, his hands behind his back and then put some on you, your hands behind your back as well. NOW!" Dean yell when the kid didn't move right away. He glanced at his watch. It was now almost two o'clock in the morning. By the time he got to their hotel, packed and figured out where this Mt. Lowe was it would be almost dawn. He would have to wait until later so he could use darkness as a cover.

**December 6****th**** at 4:00am**

Mt. Lowe Railway Loop was a pretty well traveled trail in the summer, spring, and fall but in the winter it was nearly void of people, especially at night. Because of L.A.'s relatively mild winter most animals didn't hibernate so the woods were still alive with various creatures twittering back and forth. The dirt trails had been carved out of the forest by the millions of people, dogs, and wildlife who traveled on them each year. There were various spots on the trail where small clearings had been made and it was possible to pitch a tent or two. It was in one of those small clearings were Professor Charles Eppes currently slept.

Charlie had hiked the first half of the eleven miles and made camp in one of the areas that was designated for tents. While at home Charlie would usually go to bed around ten o'clock, unless he was caught up in a math problem, here in the woods he had staid up until midnight, just listening to the sounds of the wilderness around him. The owls had come out, little yellow eyes could be seen every now and then from possums, raccoons, and other larger rodents. It had been hard but Charlie had forced himself not to bring any paper or pencils along with him, his aim was to enjoy nature and not think about anything related to math, the FBI, or anything else in his every day life. So far, he had managed to do that.

The tent he had brought along was small and light, the hike was strenuous enough without adding any extra weight onto his back. The noises from the forest drifted in but were serene and quiet enough where it didn't disturb his sleep. However, when the all too familiar noise of a car door slamming shut went off a couple hundred yards away Charlie was startled awake. It took him a few moments to rub the sleep out of his eyes and realize what he had heard but growing up in the suburbs and so close to the city Charlie was sure of what the noise had been. For a second he was confused, he was in the middle of the woods, what was a car doing out here? Looking at his map that lay beside him he saw that the trail he had been walking on ran alongside an old service road that park rangers used in emergencies.

Then another question popped into his mind, what were they stopping for? There was an old, abandoned park ranger station along the road but it hadn't been used in at least twenty years. Had they seen his tent and decided to come check on him, make sure he had a permit? But it was almost four in the morning, what would they be doing out here this early in the morning? And Charlie knew for a fact, he hadn't left any lights on or forgot to put the fire out, there was no way they could see him from the road, the sun was just now rising.

When he started hearing raised voices though it became too much of a temptation so Charlie took off his sweat pants and slipped on his jeans and hiking boots. He didn't bother with a sweater over his t-shirt, it wasn't that cold. Slipping out of his tent as quietly as he could Charlie made his way through the brush until he was crouched down behind a few bushes about fifty feet away where he could spy on whoever was making all the noise.

The vehicle was a park ranger jeep but only one of the six men that were standing around wore a uniform. In fact two of the men were wearing cuffs. Charlie's heartbeat sped up a little bit as he started thinking about what could be going on. It was nothing good he knew that for sure. One of the men, he looked like the leader of the group, was shouting something, it sounded like move, to one of the men cuffed. The cuffed man, no wait, it looked more like a teenager, started saying something back. The teenager wasn't loud and didn't look the shouting man in the face; he was definitely scared to death. The other cuffed man looked a little older but not by much, probably in his early twenties. He was shouting though and yelling all sorts of things at the lead man. The older cuffed guy was more confident despite the obvious bad situation they were in.

The sudden urge to sneeze caught Charlie off guard and he was unable to stop it before it came out. Although he was able to muffle the quick sneeze Charlie quickly looked up but no one had seemed to hear. Still, Charlie didn't like what he was seeing and he got the strong feeling that he wasn't supposed to be seeing what was going on. Remembering the satellite phone he had brought Charlie quietly sneaked back to his camp and started searching for the phone, despite his genius he was a horrible packer and even a worse organizer.

Two minutes later and Charlie had found the phone. He quickly dialed Don's number from memory and silently prayed that Don would have his cell phone near, although there wasn't much need. Don kept his cell phone on twenty four seven and was never more than twenty feet away from it. Charlie had even caught him wearing it while he was sleeping one time. He had made fun of Don for a week after that.

A groggy, obviously irritated voice drew him away from the flash back. "Eppes," the voice was slow and distracted, nothing compared to the usual sharp, confident voice that always answered the cell phone.

"Don, it's Charlie," he whispered realizing that Don wouldn't have this number programmed into his phone.

"Charlie it's four in the morning," Don replied, still not anymore awake. He rolled back onto his back as he rubbed a hand through his hair and up and down his face. Nope, still not even half way to the land of the living.

"Don, I'm six and a half miles up on Mt. Lowe Railway Loop. I'm at a small clearing that is just across from an old ranger station and there are six men entering the building. Two of them are in handcuffs. Don, somebody needs…" Charlie's whispering was cut off by what sounded like a now awake and alert voice.

Don had missed it in the first few words Charlie had spoken because of how out of it he had been but now he could clearly hear it in his brother's tone, Charlie was scared and nervous. And had he just said that two men were in handcuffs. He was now fully awake and already climbing out of bed, searching for something to put on. Plans were running through his head. "Charlie what do you mean two men are in handcuffs?"

"There are six men and two are in handcuffs, they're yelling at each other. One of the guys in handcuffs is saying he's going to kill them. They woke me up; I don't know what to do." Charlie didn't realize it but when he said the last sentence he sounded like he was twelve years old again, hiding from the bullies on the playground.

In turn Don reverted back to when he was seventeen and took on the protective brother voice. "Move into the woods at least five hundred yards Charlie, try to hide in a bush or something. I'm coming up there, don't move until you hear my voice. Got it?"

"Yeah, hurry Don," Charlie said before shutting off the phone. He continued to stand in the one spot for a few seconds more just staring at the phone. What was he doing, what was happening? This was supposed to be a relaxing vacation. Tearing himself from his thoughts Charlie figured he had better keep the phone with him and get some water. He wouldn't be able to pack, that would make too much noise.

As he went to turn around to reach for the cooler though Charlie found himself staring down the barrel of a gun. He froze and his heart stopped beating for a second. The weapon was inches from his face and the open barrel was all he could see, all he could focus on. His breath hitched in his throat and he couldn't say a word.

"Who were you talking to? Who's Don?" The voice on the other end of the gun asked in a cold, metallic voice.

Charlie was unable to answer. All he could concentrate on was the gun that was in front of him, his mind had frozen.

"Answer me!" The voice yelled.

"Who are you talking to Pete?!" Another voice shouted from a few yards away.

"I found someone; he was talking to someone on his phone, telling them about us!" The first voice answered back.

Charlie was close to a panic attack by now. His breathing had almost become non-existent, as if he had forgotten how to perform basic functions.

"Who was he talking to?" The voice didn't yell this time, it was close by.

"Someone named Don, he's coming. This guy told them exactly where we are." Voice one said, also not yelling, using a voice that somebody reserved for when the other person was standing next to them.

Charlie still didn't register the men's faces though. He could hear their sharp, unkind voices but the only thing he could see was the gun.

"Who is he? Does he have a wallet?" Second voice spoke.

"I don't know, he won't talk and hasn't even moved. I can't even tell if he's still breathing." First voice said, the gun remained still.

"He looks petrified, get rid of the gun." Second voice said.

Charlie blinked for the first time when the gun dropped from view. The two men's faces were vague in the early morning pre-dawn light. One had a brown hair in a military cut, the other was bald. That was about all that Charlie was able to register, he was still trying to remember to breathe.

"What's your name?" The bald man asked in a slightly kinder tone.

Not knowing why Charlie simply shook his head. He was still rooted to the spot and for some reason his voice was not working.

The bald man sighed and reached out for Charlie's pocket.

The sudden action made Charlie jump and he backed away from the hand. The gun came level with his head again but Charlie was more concerned with what the bald man had been reaching for. He was finally able to speak, "What are you doing?"

"If you won't tell me your name then I want your wallet," the bald man said in such a matter of the fact voice.

Not feeling like having them rustle through his personal stuff Charlie told them, "Charlie Eppes." His voice was shaky and his body trembled slightly to match but Charlie was just happy he could speak. He kept his eyes away from the gun.

"Who was the man you were talking too? Who is Don?"

"Don Eppes," the short haired man with the gun suddenly said. 

"What?" The bald man asked, looking at his partner with a strange look.

"Don's your brother isn't he? There's a Don Eppes in L.A., he's an FBI agent. I was busted by him about a month ago."

"No! No, he's a friend, he's not…not related," Charlie said quickly, knowing the attempt was weak but he also knew that nothing good could come out of these men finding out his brother was an FBI agent.

"Bullshit," the short haired man said. "You told him to hurry, he's coming. Bill he told him exactly where we were, we have to get out of here now."

"Damn it," the bald man yelled. "Get him in the truck, if he's a FBI agent's brother Nick's going to want to keep him for collateral. I'll tell Nick."

Charlie's hopes were falling as his fear was rising. His body started to shake more violently and he found he couldn't speak again. The gun had come back into view.

"If you don't start walking now, I'm going to knock you out and carry you," the short haired man said, venom laced his voice.

**Just wanted to let everyone know that Mt. Lowe Railway Loop is a real place but I'm making up the scenery to fit my purposes in the story. I've never been there seeing as I live on the East Coast, forgive me West Coast people but I searched for a trail near L.A and found that one. I just wanted to tell people this in case anyone's been there and realized that Mt. Lowe Railway Loop probably is nothing like what I'm describing. **


	5. Chapter 5

**December 6****th**** at 10:00am**

Everything around him was black. His body felt as if it was suspended in space but something was pulling him in. Gravity was bringing him back down to Earth. Ever slowly his body began to feel, things started to come into focus. The first thing that he realized was he was lying down on something cold and hard. His hand twitched a second later more from reflex than voluntarily movement. For some reason his arm was starting to throb, it came from his bicep and radiated down to his fingers. Then his head started to hurt. What had happened to him? He let out a groan as the pain sharpened.

A second later he felt a something touch his shoulder, a hand maybe? His eyes weren't cooperating though; they wouldn't open no matter how hard he tried. In the distance he could hear someone talking, whether it was directed towards him or just close by he couldn't tell. The voice seemed to belong to a man and it was calm, almost soothing. As his mind was slowly coming out of the pitch black hole he had seemed to be in his hearing began to get closer to normal and even his sight began to return.

"Easy, the drug is wearing off."

'Drug, what drug?' Charlie thought to himself worriedly. When had he been drugged? Then it came back to him, the group of men, calling Don, the gun, the walk to the park ranger vehicle, the guy with the needle, and then his mind went blank. He felt panic slowly start to rise in him but he shoved it back down, right now he had to concentrate on becoming fully awake.

With more concentration and effort than it should have taken Charlie finally managed to open his eyes. At first all he could distinguish were blurry shapes, then he slowly began to realize that the dark mass above him was a person. A few seconds later and he could tell that it was a man with brown hair, a slightly pale complexion, young, maybe a few years younger than him, and surprisingly familiar though he couldn't figure out from where.

"Just lay here for a second, if you move to fast you'll regret it, trust me."

Charlie blinked once, then twice. It was all clear now, he had finally been able to push away the last of the blackness that had lingered around the edges of his sight and had kept his senses slightly dulled. While his arm still throbbed, his head was feeling better. His five senses were acute and aware of the environment around him. Even a sick feeling in his stomach that he hadn't realized was there until just now was starting to fade.

The man that had been leaning above him had sat down at his side, giving him a little more breathing room. Once the figure was gone though the full force of the fluorescent lighting hit him and he had to turn his head to the side so he wasn't blinded by the bright lights.

"The full effect should be gone in about a minute, it wears off pretty quickly."

Charlie studied the man as he spoke. Why did that guy look so familiar? He knew that he had seen the man before but he couldn't remember meeting him. Charlie was horrible with names but he usually remembered faces pretty well. He closed his eyes as a fresh wave of pain emitted from his arm. When he opened them again Charlie saw the man still sitting there and finally realized who he was.

Despite the previous warning Charlie bolted up into a sitting position but only made it two feet by scooting on his butt before dizziness over took him and he had to stop and settle himself.

"Take it easy," Sam Winchester said as he sat up straight and reached for the man that had just bolted up like he had seen a ghost. His hand was just a few inches from the man's shoulder when he overcame the dizziness and started shouting.

"St..stay back," Charlie stammered when he lowered his hand from his head and saw Sam Winchester's hand inches from him. He backed up again but this time not as fast, aware that he needed to stay as sharp as possible around this man.

Sam was thoroughly confused; the guy in front of him looked terrified of him. As far as he knew he had never met the guy, let alone hurt him. Nevertheless he backed his hand away and went back to leaning against the wall.

"What do you want?" This time his tone came out accusing and more boldly, although Charlie had not purposefully chosen that, he was just glad he wasn't having a nervous breakdown.

"What do you mean? I was trying to help you," Sam said, giving the guy in front of him a weird look.

"Where did you take me?" Charlie asked, not seeming to hear Sam's last sentence, he was too busy keeping an eye on Sam's every move. The Winchester man didn't look armed but he had read how dangerous the brothers could be. He had seen the pictures from the St. Louis murder crime scene photos. True, it was Dean Winchester who had committed that murder and tortured that victim but Agent Hendrickson had told him that Sam Winchester was just as capable and it was pressing that both boys were found.

Charlie had taken a quick look around the room that he was currently in before riveting his gaze on Sam. The bright fluorescent lighting, bare concrete walls and floors indicated that they were in some sort of storage room or at least a room that wasn't used very often. There was noting in here, the room was entirely vacant minus himself and Sam. Most important there was nothing he could use to defend himself. The only thing that broke up the monotony of the gray walls was the door five feet away and Charlie would have to be an idiot to think that he was getting out that way.

"Look, calm down. I didn't take you anywhere." This was getting ridiculous, why was this guy treating him like the bad person. The fact that Charlie might recognize him as a fugitive never occurred to him. "You were kidnapped along with me and my brother. The guy who took us is named Nick Colbert. He's my biological father but I have no idea why you're here. My name is Sam Winchester, what's yours?"

Now that the shock of waking up in a strange room next to a highly dangerous criminal after someone had drugged you was wearing off slightly Charlie was able to process some of what the guy was staying. Nick Colbert? Who was he? The name didn't sound familiar but apparently he was this man's father. And his brother, Dean Winchester was here as well, but where? Out of the two if he had to be in a room with one of them Charlie would choose Sam but if Dean was here then he was screwed. But hadn't Sam just said he had been kidnapped as well, that didn't make any sense. And by his father, why would his father kidnap him? He knew why he had been taken but Sam being kidnapped by his own dad didn't make sense. And wait, he had said that his father's name was Nick Colbert, why did they have different last names? There were too many questions running through his mind and even though it was working and he was a supposed genius he couldn't think straight.

"What do you mean?" Was all Charlie managed to say in response.

Alright, now Sam was getting frustrated, what was wrong with this guy? He didn't think he could have said it any plainer than what he had. "I'm not going to hurt you, that's what I mean. We're on the same side right now. Nick Colbert is the guy who took us. My brother, Seeth, and I are his sons, we escaped from him about a year ago, and that's why he took us. Now do you know why he would have been interested in you?" Sam swore if this guy didn't start making sense he was going to scream.

"But you're wanted by the FBI. My brother just got your case." This was all just too much. It had to be the drugs, yeah; the drugs were causing him not to think clearly. And hadn't he just said his brother's name was Seeth, Charlie thought it was Dean.

Sam was happy that he finally understood why the man in front of him had freaked out but the realization that he was in the room with a kidnapped brother of an FBI agent didn't bode well in his mind. He could see this offense getting added to his long rap sheet through some mistake. Right now that didn't matter though, like he had just said, for right now they were on the same side. "My brother and I, we didn't do those things that the FBI thinks we did, I promise. I would explain but you look confused enough. For now let's just accept the fact that we are going to have to work together to get out of here and then you can go back to your misconceived notions of who I am."

Charlie was taken a bit off guard by the man's blunt response. Every criminal in the world always said they didn't do it but Charlie had noticed something different in the way Sam had said it. There was something in the man's eyes that made him want to believe. Even if Charlie didn't believe him though, Sam was right, if he had been kidnapped along with Sam the first thing to do was get out of here.

"My name is Charlie."

**December 6****th**** at 5:45pm **

If he hadn't been in such a hurry and his mind hadn't been preoccupied with other things Dean might have appreciated the drive out to Mt. Lowe Railway Loop. Who knew that someone could find this many trees this close to L.A. As it was though Dean was busy thinking about other stuff and didn't bother to notice how perfect the sunset was or how beautiful the trees looked under the orange sky. He had spent all day calling people, trying to figure out how Nick could have found them so easily. No one was able to tell him. Bobby had made Dean promise not to do anything until he could get there, well Bobby wouldn't be here until tomorrow night and there was no way in hell Dean was sitting around that long with his thumbs up his butt.

His plan was sketchy at best. Dean had managed to find an old map online of the hiking trail and was able to locate the cabin that the guy had talked about. It was about five and half miles up the trail, there was an old dirt road that was accessible by car but there was no way he could drive the Impala up there without attracting attention. He would have to hike, he hated nature. Deciding that the best chance he had for an ambush would be at night Dean had left the hotel at about five o'clock. That way he could hike during the day and do some recon before it got too dark out, then he would make his move.

Dean was about five minutes from the park entrance when he noticed a police car in his rearview mirror, lights flashing. "Shit!" Dean exclaimed he didn't have time for this. If he ran then the policeman would call for backup, if he hadn't already. Maybe it was something small, where his licenses plates expired? He was usually pretty careful about changing them as needed, even though they were fake. Taking a chance Dean pulled over to the side of the road. Much to his surprise, and relief, the cop car sped past, not even slowly down. Taking it as dumb luck Dean continued on towards his destination.

The parking lot for hikers was close enough to the entrance that Dean realized pulling in there was not going to be an option. There must have been twenty police cars, ranging from the every day ones to a freaking SWAT van. His heart sank even further when he noticed a couple people wearing FBI jackets. What were they here for, had Sam and Seeth been spotted? Dean doubted Nick would be that stupid and careless though. Maybe they were here for something else?

'Yeah right Dean,' he said to himself as he drove past the exit, hoping he hadn't stopped long enough to be noticed. Three miles up the road Dean saw an old dirt road and turned onto it. It seemed his streak of luck was continuing and the house at the end of the long driveway looked abandoned. He could park the Impala here with reasonable certainty that it wouldn't be discovered.

Even though the chance of him getting caught was more than likely Dean had to go and see if his brothers were still there. So far he had been having a good day all things considered, maybe the damn FEDs were there for something else. Looking at his watch Dean read 5:45. He glanced up at the sky, mostly hidden by trees, and figured he had twenty minutes until the woods would be dark enough to give him enough cover. Before he had planned on just finding the shack and then hiding out until dark to make his move, now he was going to have to be careful and skirt around the path until he got close enough.

Twenty five minutes later and Dean was on the move. Even though there was a little light left up above the dense forestation made the world down here below the trees seem like midnight. He headed back towards the park, sticking close to the road so he wouldn't get lost but far enough in the woods where a passerby wouldn't be able to see him. About thirty minutes later Dean heard voices and came to a stop. Through a few holes in the trees and some very quiet walking Dean could see the entrance to the path.

The parking lot was ablaze from the headlights of the cop cars. There may have been a couple less but it still looked like a doughnut convention. Just as he was about to go he noticed two men walking towards him, they seemed to be arguing. Not wanting to chance being seen or heard Dean ducked behind the bush to his side and hide there. Besides, he might be able to find out what was going on.

**December 6****th**** at 6:20pm**

"I told you they were involved, that this was too much of a coincidence!" Agent Hendrickson bellowed at Don Eppes. The man was a good agent but that didn't mean he had to like him personally. When he had found out who had been partnered up with him this time he had nearly quit. Hendrickson couldn't fault the man, his brother was missing after all, but if he couldn't repress his emotions and think like he had been trained to then another agent was going to have to take over.

Don Eppes glared at the guy as they came to a stop by the edge of the woods. They had walked away from the hubbub of the activity when Hendrickson had come back with the results from the hundreds of fingerprints they had managed to lift from the cabin and asked to speak with him privately. "You have two incomplete fingerprints, one with only a 47 chance it might be Sam Winchester's, the other is 83, that's still a 17 chance it isn't his. What about the others, you haven't mentioned those? You're so damned focused on these Winchesters that you could care less if it's Robert Fisher's prints in there!" Don yelled back.

After Don had called the FBI to get a team ready to meet him at Mt. Lowe he had gone straight there. It had taken him an hour due to the morning rush hour despite his sirens and aggressive driving. By the time he had gotten there the team that the office had sent up had already spoken to the park ranger and informed them of an old service road. Ten minutes later and they had found Charlie's campsite, the cabin, and fresh tire tracks in the mud that didn't belong to them. Charlie's campsite looked as if he had just left it for a quick walk in the woods but despite all of Don's screaming and the team searching Charlie was no were to be found. Another hour and half of the agents in his office along with some LAPD had shown up. Prints were lifted and taken back to the office to be ran. Don had been rushing around all day but none of it had seemed useful. He felt like everyone had just sat around on their asses although Don knew that everyone cared for Charlie and was doing the best they could. Still he was frustrated and even on a good day he didn't handle Hendrickson well.

"Don't talk to me like that, I know these Winchesters and trust me, if they are the ones that have your brother than your better off calling this a recovery mission!" Hendrickson shouted before he could think about what he had said. He hated Don but didn't have an issue with Charlie; anyway, even if he hated Don there was no reason for him to say that.

Don's first had curled up and he had raised it slightly before he thought about what might happen to him if he punched another agent. Overall it wouldn't matter, but what he had to think about was him getting taken off the case if he showed too much anger and not enough self-control. "Who did the other finger prints belong to?" Don finally asked when he was able to control his tone a little bit better; he still didn't look at Hendrickson though, just ran a hand through his hair and stared off into the woods.

Hendrickson followed Don's gaze, thinking maybe the agent had seen something but there was nothing there. He got the feeling that if Don looked at him it would be to make sure his fist was aimed for maximum damage. "Nick Colbert, Seeth Colbert, Pete Williks, Greg Bontaro, Kyle Ilsur, and there were at least four other separate prints but they weren't in our database plus Sam, that makes ten different people. We didn't find Charlie's prints in the house. Nick Colbert is the only man out of the five that I know of. From what I hear he's just like the Winchesters, however, they have more solid evidence of this guy. He's been linked to at least ten murders, grand theft in three different states, and various other crimes. Seeth is his son, he hasn't been directly connected to any serious crimes, just petty theft but the people who know Nick best think that the apple doesn't fall to far from the tree. I contacted the lead agent on his case and he's going to be coming down here tomorrow."

Don let out a sigh, how could Charlie have gotten mixed up with these people. What were they doing all the way out here in the middle of the woods? Sure the park ranger station had been abandoned but someone would have noticed them, it wasn't the best hideout. The woods were pitch black, there was little chance that they would find anything until morning. As he looked away to face Hendrickson he could have sworn he saw some movement. But when he looked again there was nothing there, it had just been the wind or animal. "What about Dean Winchester, don't the brothers usually travel together? Charlie said he had seen six men, two were in handcuffs, what do you think about that?"

Out of all this that little fact was the one thing that Don couldn't figure out, why would there be two men in handcuffs, who had they been. Maybe they were two of the four mystery prints?

"I don't know where Dean is, maybe he was careful and didn't leave any but you can be sure if Sam is involved so is Dean. As far as the two men handcuffed we have to consider them hostages as well. We're looking for three people."

Don nodded but didn't really take too much stock in what Hendrickson had said. It seemed unlikely that Dean was the only one careful enough not to leave any fingerprints. And no one had been reported missing in the past five days, it was unusual for this county but it did happen. So unless they were from out of town then Dean couldn't fathom who those two men could be. "I'm going to go check on the progress," Don said before walking off, not bothering to see if Hendrickson was following or not.

Hendrickson did follow, thinking about how he could have gotten so lucky to be paired with Don Eppes.

**SNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSSNSNSN**

The first thing that crossed Dean's mind when he had digested all the information the information the two men had inadvertently given him was that Seeth and Sam weren't here. That meant that while they weren't in the FBI's custody, Dean no longer had any idea where the two of them could be. Nick could have taken them anywhere. The second bit of information that Dean was able to process was the fact that Hendrickson was here and he was looking for them.

Dean started to think about all the places where Nick could have taken them but nothing specific came to mind. He knew that the man wouldn't have been dumb enough to take them back to Jason's. Dean knew where that was and so did other hunters, no the house was most likely deserted. What did Nick want with Seeth and Sam anyway? They had already proven that Sam couldn't turn the psychic thing on and off like a light switch, Seeth was a little more useful, at least he could control his power. But Nick was also taking a big risk for a little revenge. The whole hunting community had turned against Nick, Gordon, Jason, and anyone associated with them. There were even a few that might kill the rogue hunters if they got the chance, namely Bobby and Ellen.

And then supposedly this FBI agent's brother was kidnapped, great, one more thing to go on their record. Dean had noticed Hendrickson when the two men had come right up to the edge of the woods but he didn't know the other guy. Something about the other guy had made Dean believe that he didn't quite believe that the Winchesters were responsible for this. 'He might a little smarter than Hendrickson, wouldn't be hard,' Dean thought to himself.

However, any chance of using a fake ID to get information was out of the question, everyone thought that Sam and him were suspects, they would have their pictures, know what they look like. Since it was an agent's brother that had been kidnapped you could bet the entire police force would be hunting for him. The FBI was Dean's only chance though, they might know something that he didn't. They had more resources and men at their disposal. Dean tried to figure out how easy it would be to convince the unknown agent that he was innocent and to let him help find Sam, on the side of course, without Hendrickson or anyone else at the FBI knowing. Dean was pretty sure his luck was over; there was no way in hell that the little plan that was forming in his head right now would work. It was his only shot though; he would have to take the risk.

**Alright, this chapter was a pain in the butt to write. Hopefully it doesn't suck too badly. Next chapter should be better though, the titans known as Dean and Don will clash. **


	6. Chapter 6

**This story takes place after the second season finale of Supernatural and before the third season finale of Numb3rs. . **

**December 6****th**** at 9:00pm**

Dean drove slowly down Vern St. It was about nine o'clock and he was looking for apartment 867. If the street that he had been on last night had been too loud, this one was too quiet. There were no white picket fences or porch swings but the lawns were neatly manicured and the apartment buildings all looked the same. Dean had no idea how someone could live like this, it was too normal, too boring for his tastes. The street was turning left and when Dean rounded the corner he let out a little "Bingo." Right on the very end of the row of mailboxes in front of the building stood one that read 867 in big black letters. He had found the home of FBI agent Don Eppes.

After spending thirty minutes in the woods watching the agents scurry around Dean had learned two things. One, that unless they were purposefully being quiet FBI agents were quite loud, and two, that the agent he was interested in was named Don Eppes. As soon as he had learned the agent's name Dean had trekked back to his car, something that was much more difficult than he thought he was going to be seeing as he could only see three feet in front of him due to the intense darkness of the woods. He would never tell anyone but he had run into no less than four trees. When he had finally gotten back to his car Dean grabbed Sam's laptop and did a little searching. Amazingly Don Eppes was listed in the phone book along with his address.

As he had been searching for the man's address in the phone Dean had wondered if contacting the agent was worth the risk. From the conversation he had heard the FBI knew no more than Dean did, except the names of the men who were involved and he had those now. Then he had received a phone call from an old acquaintance. He hadn't heard from the man in a couple of years but the conversation had been enough to convince Dean to continue on with his plan. Still, half way to Don's house Dean had almost turned around but then he had remembered something that he didn't have and only Don would be able to get. The information the two men had that he had found in the dead girl's house. He had locked them in the closet and then once he was out of the vicinity he had called the police pretending to be a concerned neighbor who had heard a lot of noise coming from the house. By now the two men would be in lock up. Dean, with his face plastered everywhere as a suspect in the kidnapping of a FBI agent's brother, would not be able to gain access to the two men, but Don would. Dean could also use that as a bargaining chip when he "talked" with Don Eppes.

**December 7****th**** at 5:00am**

It was five o'clock in the morning and rush hour had just started in L.A. Although unnoticeable there were about twenty less cars on the road today, the owners of those cars probably wishing all they had to deal with at the moment was traffic. Despite the sun just now peeking over the horizon the L.A. FBI field office was full of people. No one that was working on Charlie's disappearance had gone home last night and with the coffee machine broke that was something very unusual. While the energy in the room was probably less than that at a morgue Don had to give the others credit, they were trying and they weren't going to let him down. That didn't mean he was letting the people around him know how much he appreciated their help though.

Quite the contrary, Don was not only tired and out of caffeine but his emotional state was off the map. Hendrickson was being just as much of pain in the ass as always. He was currently trying to get the Assistant Director Merrick to take him off the case and hand him the lead. That would happen when hell froze over. However, Merrick had been looking over in Don's direction a lot and his facial expression did not give Don the idea that he was happy with his agent's performance right now. Because of the frustration from Hendrickson and the helpless feeling he was currently experiencing Don hadn't been treating everyone the greatest so he really couldn't fault Merrick.

When the phone rang on his desk Don quickly grabbed it and let out a slightly harsher, "What?!" then he had meant too.

David and Colby exchanged looks at their boss's tone and neither was finding comfort in the other's eyes. They had also been on edge but more from Don's erratic behavior than anything else. Just as they tried to go back to their own jobs on this case they both jumped slightly when they heard Don slam down the phone and mutter a few curses.

Megan, who was five feet away, looked up when she heard the phone slam down. She glanced over at Merrick who might have been dreaming of throwing darts at Don judging from the look on his face. The Assistant Director had already approached her numerous times to tell her to calm Don down. Not only did Merrick have to watch Don closely because of how related Don was to the case but also because Hendrickson was here. When ever they had visiting agents Merrick was always more tense, not wanting those agents to go back to their home office and talk about how he couldn't control his team. Merrick then shot her a glance that clearly told her to deal with Don or he would. Megan gave him a slight nod and walked to her boss.

"Don," Megan said in as flat of voice as possible.

"Yeah," Don replied wearily without looking at her, he just continued to stare blindly at the computer screen.

"You need to go home for an hour, take a shower, and eat something," Megan said, getting straight to the point. Although she wasn't going to push it and suggest he take a nap.

David and Colby both backed up unconsciously at Megan's brave suggestion. They needed to be able to escape quick when things turned bad.

Don sighed and thought briefly of arguing with Megan. The first thing that popped in his mind was to stand up and start shouting about how no one was doing anything to find Charlie and he was the only actually doing work around here, etc, etc. However, thanks to FBI training, even in his current deteriorated state, Don was able to think before speaking. He knew Merrick was over there with Hendrickson breathing down his neck, using every rule in the book to get Don thrown off the case. If Don created a scene now, it was likely that Merrick would not only take him off the case but not allow him back in the office until this was over. There was no way that was going to happen. Besides, maybe if he was able to get away he would be able to think and come up with a different plan. So much to everyone's surprise Don said okay.

David, Colby, and Megan all took a breath for the first time since Megan had suggested that Don go home. The bodies went from flight mode to just highly wary. The three of them all exchanged looks, slightly telling each other how lucky they were that Don took this calmly.

By the time Don had grabbed his coat and gotten on the elevator the whole floor was watching him, not quite sure what to expect out of this seemingly calm Don Eppes. As soon as the elevator doors closed behind Don it felt like someone had opened up window and let the air back in. The agents went back to work still tired but a little less stressed now that they didn't have to worry about someone yelling at them every five seconds.

**December 7****th**** at 12:00am**

There were no windows, no clocks, nothing that would indicate the time in any way. However, years of being locked away in dark rooms had given Seeth a pretty accurate ability to guess just how much time had passed. He figured it had been about twelve hours since he had woken up. There was no way he could guess how long he had been drugged though. Nick did have a special spot for one certain knock out drug and if that had been used then he had been out any time between four and six hours.

What really bothered him though was the gun shot wound. Killing the demon had been necessary but Seeth hadn't enjoyed losing his powers as much as Sam had. Seeth was no stranger to pain but he had always been able to reassure himself that it would be better in twenty four hours. Now there was nothing he could do but hope the pain numbed soon. Thankfully, most of the pain had gone away and someone had stopped the bleeding and wrapped his leg. All that was left was a dull throbbing sensation.

The room he was in only included a bed and two doors. One led to a bathroom and the other was locked. No one had come in and so far he hadn't heard any voices. There had been a few footsteps but nothing else. No amount of torture could get him to admit it out loud and it was even hard trying to convince himself but his main worry right now was what was happening to his brothers. The last time he had seen Sam was when they had been drugged. Sam had fallen to the poison first and Seeth was unconscious shortly after that. While Dean hadn't been captured, at least to his knowledge, Seeth was still worried about him. It hadn't taken him seven days, let alone seven months to peg Dean as the protective older brother type. At first Seeth hadn't known how to react. Dean did the thing were he would scream and yell and curse until his throat was dry but Sam had said that was how Dean let you know he cared. Where Seeth came from shouting wasn't an expression of love, it usually got you hurt.

What was threatening to take over the number one spot on his list of worry though was the fear he felt at being in his father's hands again.

'No, he's not my dad, John Winchester's my dad,' Seeth said to himself. A couple days after escaping from Nick Seeth had decided that he would not only take the Winchester name but quietly declare himself John Winchester's third son. Both Dean and Sam had been a bit surprised a few days later when he introduced himself as Seeth Winchester.

Nevertheless Seeth couldn't help but feel like the small, helpless, insignificant child that he had been just seven short months ago. He had never felt like a person before, never felt needed, hell, never felt wanted, and then Sam and Dean had shown up. Ever since then he had slowly but surely began to feel apart of something, almost like he belonged with his two biological brothers. It was something that he had never known and it had taken him a long time to figure out what it was. But once he had he had no desire to go back to his old life. By helping people and doing what they did he almost felt as if he was making up for the all the things his father had forced him to do. Nick had always gotten a sick pleasure out of making Seeth do his dirty work. Of the eighteen years of abuse, the psychical portion had been easy and he would gladly go back to it if he knew that he wouldn't have to deal with the mental part.

Seeth's thought processes stopped though when he heard someone outside the door. They were undoing the lock and now the knob was turning. The door opened and Seeth was insistently thrust back into the fight or flight mode he had lived in his whole life.

"Hello Seeth," Nick Colbert said cheerfully when he walked into the room that he had locked his son in. Although there had been the slight hiccup of being discovered by a FBI agent's brother everything else had gone according to plan and on top of that he had two of his sons back. What father wouldn't be thrilled?

Seeth, who had been sitting on the bed leaning against the wall, instinctively scooted towards the corner and tried to disappear into the wall. His heart started to pound against his chest and his breathing became shallow. If he didn't move maybe Nick wouldn't see him.

Nick smiled at Seeth's reaction, looks like he wouldn't have to do too much "rehabilitation" with his youngest son. Nothing made him happier than scary the shit out of Seeth, it had been one of his greatest joys in the past and he would get to enjoy it again very soon. The boy deserved it after all; it was his fault that his wife was dead. His face fell though when he noticed Seeth's leg. Hadn't he shot him there a day ago? Why was it stretched out? Seeth had one leg tucked into his body, typical fetal position but the other one was laid out straight, Seeth had always tried to make himself appear as small as possible.

"What's wrong with your leg?" Nick demanded, the sarcastic, false, cheery tone gone replaced by a demanding, angry one.

Seeth hesitated for just a second, bad mistake.

"What's wrong with your goddamn leg?" This time he yelled as he stepped toward Seeth, towering over the boy.

Out of habit Seeth went to draw in his leg but a searing pain ripped through the thigh as the muscles stretched and tore, he managed to hold back a yelp but hissed through the hurt. He grabbed his leg right above the wound gently trying to will the pain away but it didn't work. That was when Nick reached down and grabbed his thigh. Without thinking Seeth reached for his father's hands to push them away. As soon as he touched Nick's hands he stopped, not being able to move from being paralyzed with fear. His hands remained lightly over Nick's arms and he just stared straight ahead. Two seconds he felt a hard object collide with the side of his head. He let go of his dad and one hand went to his head and the other to his stomach, his father usually worked downward. Other than that he didn't move.

When Nick brought out the switchblade Seeth's breathing quickened and his eyes grew with fear. "Please, Nick…" mistake number two, why did he just do that.

Nick stopped mid air with the blade. His son had just not only laid his hands on him, something he had never done, but now he was calling him by his first name. He was wrong, he was going to have to show Seeth that he was still boss.

"What the fuck did you just say?! I am your father and you will address me with the respect I deserve! Do you understand me you little piece of shit?!" Nick grabbed Seeth by the scruff of his neck and threw him to the ground. Even the slight groan that he heard come from Seeth didn't make him feel better. Sam and Dean had had a bad influence on Seeth; it's a good thing they were going far away.

Seeth didn't have time to react before he felt himself propelled off the bed and onto the ground. He couldn't bite back the groan when he fell on top of his wounded leg. As he tried to roll off of it a cry escaped his lips when a sharp kick landed home in his ribs. It wasn't hard to hear the snaps that followed. Seeth's eyes welled up from the pain. Another kick was aimed for his face and his head spun around. His head exploded from the pain and spots danced in front of his eyes. A ringing noise filled his ears and Seeth could feel unconsciousness coming on. He felt someone tugging on his shirt and the front half of him lifted off the ground. Nick's hot breath filled his face and he could feel the hate radiating off of his father.

"You brothers may have taught you some stuff but I guarantee you that you will learn better. They won't be around to help you, not that they would anyway. Remember Tom, they're going to visit him. Thanks to you and your brothers I'm a little low on funds; all my resources have mysteriously dried up. Sam and Dean are going to help me replenish them," Nick growled. He shoved Seeth to the ground and stormed out of the room.

Seeth's breath hitched when his body hit the hard floor and his ribs flared up. Blackness swarmed the edges of his vision and he struggled to comprehend what his dad had said. 'Tom, who's Tom?' Seeth thought to himself. 'Oh shit.'

**December 7****th**** at 5:30am**

Don opened his SUV door but paused before he got out. He stared up at his apartment, not really wanting to go in but not really liking his other option. When he had pulled up to the light where he had to choose whether to go to his house or Charlie's Don had sat there for about two minutes. A car had finally pulled up behind him and honked; Don had made the split decision to go to his house. Most of the time Don went to Charlie's after work, in fact if anyone needed to get a hold of him and for some reason he didn't answer his cell phone they always called his brother's house first. In the numerous years that he had spent with the FBI he had only received five calls at his house, the rest at Charlie's.

But tonight Don was torn. His dad wasn't expecting him; he believed that Don was at work trying to find his son. To his credit Alan Eppes took the news fairly well, as well as could be expected at least. After Don had raced to the park and searched for Charlie for about three hours and the search had became a rescue Don had gone to Charlie's house to deliver the news. At first Alan had been in shock, he didn't quite process it. When it finally sank in his dad asked for the facts and then walked away with a grim look on his face. Wanting to get back to the scene as quickly as possible and not that great at handling his or other people's emotions Don tried to say a quick goodbye and walk out while his dad was in the kitchen but Alan caught up to him.

"Donny, I love you."

Don had stopped in his tracks. His tongue was tied and all he could do was give his father a brief, sympathetic look and then walk out the door. Don had worried that his father would blame him for Charlie's disappearance, for not getting to the park fast enough, not being able to track down the people who had taken his youngest son but in a very simple way Alan had let Don know that in no way did he think it was Don's fault. Deep down he had known that those fears were irrational, his dad had never given him any reason to think those things but Don blamed himself and believed that everyone else should. It was his fault; there was no way around that.

And now here he was about to enjoy a hot shower and soothing cup of coffee while his brother was God knows where. Surely his dad would get mad at him for taking a break, hell, Don was mad at himself. He had given up so easily and let Merrick, at Hendrickson's bidding, push him out of the office. He should have fought to stay, damn being taken off the case. He could have fought them on that too.

Don went to go turn the car on and head back for work but stopped himself. He had to think rationally. Merrick wanted to impress Hendrickson, Hendrickson wanted him off the case, and if Don wasn't gone for at least an hour and if he didn't come back looking and acting better then they would kick him off the case and that couldn't happen. So with much regret and a heavy sigh Don got out of his SUV and headed into his apartment.

He paused at the entrance to take his jacket off and put his keys, cuffs, and gun on the coffee table. Just as he put the gun down he felt the hair prickle on the back of his neck.

**SNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSN**

Dean had picked the lock and snuck into Don Eppes's house. It was surprisingly easy but Dean realized that the apartment complex really wasn't that secure, besides the house looked barely lived in. There were the necessities but the fridge was almost bare, there was a little dust coating the television, shelves, and the like. The closet only contained a few clothes but hardly enough to live in. Dean was used to having four or five t-shirts and maybe two jeans but he always figured that everyone else had a little more. He had looked around for a while and had even watched television but made sure to put the remote in the same spot and turn it back to the correct channel before he switched it off.

When he had seen the lights and heard the car pull in Dean had positioned himself so that when the front door was opened he would be concealed. He heard the agent walk up the steps and open the door. Even after the door was closed, when Dean was clearly visible he remained still. He waited for Don to put his gun on the table before he stepped out of the shadows. Dean leveled his gun up with the back of the agent's head. He had no intention of using it though so the safety remained on. Just as he was about to say something Dean got the shock of his life. The guy whirled around and thrust his palm into Dean's nose while grabbing his arm and twisting it.

Instinctively Dean reached for his nose with his free hand but kept his tight grip on the gun. Within in seconds he recovered and used his foot to sweep the agent's legs out from under him. The move worked but to his credit Don recovered quickly.

Don had sensed someone behind him and before he knew it he was locked in combat with a white male. The guy had brown hair, about his height, muscular build. Don thought he looked familiar but under the circumstances Don wasn't going to pause and try to figure out who he was. Don had punched the intruder in the nose and grabbed the man's hand that was holding the gun and gave it a sharp twist. Any other person would have at least dropped the gun, Don had broken someone's wrist doing that particular move but this man held on to the gun and seemed to have anticipated what was going to happen. Although the guy's nose was bleeding he recovered quickly and before he knew it he was on the ground. Rolling out of the way of any potential gun fire, punches, or kicks Don quickly jumped to his feet. His body had automatically switched into fighter mode. In the past years he hadn't done much hand to hand combat but it had been enough to retain what he had learned at Quantico.

On the other end Dean couldn't believe how fast Don had gotten up. His experience with cops, even federal agents, had always left him disappointed. It had never been hard to disarm someone. The only people that had ever beaten him in fighting were his dad and Sam, only twice, and that was when Dean was really sick. Really, he was. But here he was, nose bleeding and his wrist feeling like it had been snapped in two. Even though he had managed to hold onto the gun he could feel his wrist had at least been sprained and Dean was pretty sure it was already swelling.

Dean threw a punch at Don Eppes's face but the other man easily dodged him. Next it was his turn to dodge a punch. Dean thought he did well until another punch came from the other fist; the guy had faked him out. Barely ducking his head in time Dean felt the blow glance off his head. Luckily he recovered in time to move out of the way of a roundhouse kick.

Don had thrown three punches and only one had managed to even graze his opponent. The kick he thought for sure would work was useless. 'This is ridiculous,' Don thought to himself as he dodged the other man's punches. Just as he was about to counter act his hip started to vibrate and a shrill ring was let out through the air. His damn cell phone was going off and that distraction was enough to give the other guy an edge.

Dean had taken his turn and thrown as many punches as he could and just when he was thinking about how stupid he could be to take on a federal agent Don's cell phone rang. For just a nanosecond the man was distracted but that was enough for Dean. He stepped forward, elbowed the guy in the face while punching him square in the gut, the last punch was to the agent's head and that sent the man to the ground. For a second Dean thought he had knocked Don unconscious but he moaned a few seconds later. Dean raised his gun, safety off this time.

One second he was on the verge of winning and the next he was on the ground. Don knew his phone had rang, knew he had been distracted for less than a second and then he knew he was on the ground and he was getting a massive headache, not to mention seeing black spots. He shook his head to try and clear it and then looked up at his attacker.

The first thing he noticed about the man was his stance. The guy was very comfortable holding a gun and his hands weren't shaking. In fact the man's whole body was calm, most people weren't that easy holding a gun to a federal agent. Another thing that was interesting was that the gun was pointed at his leg. This was both hopeful and scary in that the man didn't intend to shoot to kill, at least for the first shot.

When his eyes finally made it up to the man's face Don was surprised but not shocked. He couldn't believe who was in his apartment but for some reason it didn't feel that weird. Like it was everyday that a wanted fugitive decided to show up and assault you.

"Dean Winchester," Don said coolly. Trying to read Dean's reaction but there was none. Dean had the best poker face he had ever seen.

"You're a genius," Dean replied while rubbing his sleeve under his nose, yep, still bleeding.

"Put the gun down Dean," Don knew it was probably useless and even foolish to ask but he had to try, almost a standard in FBI protocol.

Dean cocked his head; he thought this one was going to be smarter than all the others, looks like he was wrong. "Come on man, has that ever really worked?"

"You're about to add murdering a federal agent to that list of yours," once again, he had to try. It was killing him that he couldn't come up with a plan to get out of this. Why had he put his gun on the table? He should have known better, why hadn't he picked up on an intruder sooner?

"First things first, I've never killed anyone," Dean paused, "at least anything human."

Don gave Dean a strange look. What the hell did that mean? There was something off about his guy, almost every criminal he had dealt with said they hadn't done it but for some reason Dean was more believable. "What do you want?"

Dean noticed the strange look but decided to ignore it, he didn't have time to try and convince Don of the truth, all he needed was for the man to know that they were on the same page, at least for now. "I know who took your brother."

"I know too, your brother," Don replied. What was Dean doing? Why was he here? He knew that Dean showing up had something to do with Charlie's disappearance, to much of a coincidence not to.

Letting out a short chuckle Dean replied, "You know they really should make those FBI entrance exams harder."

"Well then who took Charlie?" Don asked, he had heard this kid had a sharp tongue.

Dean paused for a second, he didn't want to let out too much information, no need to give them anything that might help them in the future. Plus more information would lead to more questions and the more questions asked the further away Sam and Seeth got. "Nick Colbert."

"Yea his prints were in the cabin near Charlie's disappearance, so were Sam's." Don said, Dean wasn't making a lick of sense.

"That's because he took Sam as well," Dean said with exasperation in his voice.

"Why would he do that?"

Dean thought for a second, how could he tell Don about Nick without telling him about well, Nick. "I assume you have a file on Nick, right. You know he's a bad guy, what he's like," Dean asked hoping he wouldn't have to go further.

"I have a file on you too," Don replied coolly.

Dean had to give Don props that was a good one. For probably the first time he decided to be the bigger person and ignore the comment. "Sam and I got on his bad side a while back and I assume he's out for revenge, your brother probably got in the way. Wrong time, wrong place."

"So why are you here?" Don asked, still not sure why Dean would be risking his life and freedom. Dean seemed to know everything that he knew so why waste his time trying to convince him that he's innocent.

This was the hard part; Dean never liked asking for help from anyone, let alone a FBI agent. "I think we can help each other. I have a lot of contacts that can help find Nick and you have two guys in jail right now that might know where our brothers were taken."

Don was taken back. Dean wanting information was natural, not that surprising but offering information in return, that was something he hadn't expected. Then again, Dean was a major suspect in his brother's kidnapping and everyone local law enforcement agency was looking for him so if there were two guys in jail that might have information Dean wouldn't be able to just walk in and get it. "You want me to get information from the guys and then give it to you." It was more of a statement then anything.

"Like I said, genius."

"What stops me from turning you in, how do I even know you're telling the truth? For all I know this could be part of plan to get your buddies out of jail," Don said although he already was trying to calculate how much time it would take him to get to the local L.A. County jail.

"Why would I be lying? Why would I risk kidnapping a federal agent? Does that really fit in with my file?"

"Nothing really fits with your file."

"That's because we didn't do what you guys said." Dean thought for a moment, "Okay yes we did but there are all logical explanations for that stuff. I would explain but we don't have time right now. Are you going to help me or not? All I want is my brothers back, then you can go back to hunting us down," Dean noticed his mistake when he saw the confused look on Don's face at the word "brothers," they didn't know about Seeth. "I'll even let you arrest me after I know Sam is safe," no need to tell them about Seeth.

Don looked at Dean. While the kid was maintaining a very cool persona Don could see the underlying panic and fear, something only a big brother would notice. Don realized that they were in the same boat; both were trying to maintain their cool while really going crazy just at the thought that they might lose one of the most important people in their lives. Then again, this would mean helping a fugitive; no way in hell Don could do that. However there was something in Dean's voice that made him believe the man about being innocent. Don had never believed a criminal before. Looking up at Dean Don could now see his hand shaking just slightly.

"Okay."

**Read and Review please. **


	7. Chapter 7

**December 7****th**** at 2:00pm**

Sam glanced down at Charlie Eppes as he made another round across the room. For twenty minutes Sam had been pacing from wall to wall, before that he had alternated between sitting and standing, trying desperately to think of a way they could escape. He couldn't rely on Seeth this time. Hell, he didn't even know if his brother was alive. The last time he had seen Seeth he had been losing consciousness fast. Sam was almost positive Nick wouldn't have killed Seeth, although he didn't know if that was a good thing or not. Nick would want his revenge and unbeknownst to him Seeth no longer had the ability to heal. Most likely the asshole would beat Seeth to an inch of death, expect him to heal only to come the next day and see him dead. Sam sighed, running a hand over his head as he thought about all the different situations Seeth could be in right now.

And then there was Dean. God Dean was probably having a fit right now. Sam knew that Dean would do everything in his power to get them out of this. And that is what worried Sam. Sam prayed that his older brother would be smart enough to find help.

Trying to put his own mind at peace Sam had told himself that at least he hadn't heard any screaming or God forbid, gun shots. However, he hadn't heard anything else either, not even footsteps or shouting which led him to believe the room was sound proof. Charlie wasn't much company either. Their conversation had kind of died after the introductions, a few hours later and both of them had fallen asleep but since they had been up neither of them had talked. Sam had tried but hadn't been able to think of a topic that wouldn't bring up questions. Something told him though that even if he could think of something to talk about Charlie wouldn't answer; the guy seemed to be off in his own little world.

Don would have been proud of him; Charlie had not drifted off into his math land for geeks once since he had been here. Charlie had kept his head down and focused his eyes on a dark stain that was a few feet away. At first it was just something that kept him from staring at Sam. He wanted to believe Sam, everything in his heart told him he could trust the other man but his head, which he listened to far too often, kept saying not too. So he had spent the past couple hours going over all the details of the Winchester case. There was some pretty hard evidence against these guys but something was just not adding up. Nothing about the killing patterns, the different crimes, the locations, seemed logical. It all seemed totally random, which is impossible. No, the case was missing something; the police had left something out or didn't have the whole story, that was the only explanation.

Charlie sensed Sam stop moving and felt his gaze on him, he looked up to meet the man's eyes. He couldn't help the slight tremor of fear that coursed through him.

Sam was surprised when Charlie looked up, he had just been thinking that a bomb could probably go off and the guy wouldn't even notice. Desperate for a conversation starter, anything to get his mind off the worry and intense anticipation that was fuming through him at the moment Sam decided to just start asking questions. "So how did you get involved?"

A little taken back by the sudden noise Charlie didn't respond for a few seconds. Neither Sam nor Charlie had spoken much in the past day. They had both slept on and off but mostly they had just sat around doing nothing. "I was camping on the mountain. When I saw two guys being dragged into a cabin I called my brother, he told me to hide until he got there. I got off the phone and there were two guys behind me with guns, then I was sedated." Charlie amazed himself at his ability to explain what had happened so calmly. He didn't even feel stressed or compelled to try and solve P vs. P.

"Pretty calm for a mathematician," Sam replied. He was impressed by Charlie's nonchalant answer. While at Stanford Sam had heard of Charles Eppes and had studied his work briefly, mainly for his required courses. His math professor loved the young genius. Unfortunately Sam had never been very good at math

"You know who I am?" Usually Charlie didn't mind being recognized but Sam knowing him didn't give him the ego boost that usually happened.

"My math professor at Stanford was a fan of your work. Me, I never understood a word of what you wrote. Math was not my best subject," Sam admitted. He would take law over algebra any day of the week.

"Oh," Charlie responded. 'Great, not only is my brother hunting him down but now I most likely caused him to fail math,' he then thought to himself. Sam didn't look any more agitated with him so he decided to ignore it. Time to start getting some real questions answered. "So, your brother, Seeth is here too?"

Sam recognized the look in Charlie's eyes; he got it every time he talked to someone and wanted answers. Whereas Dean was direct and you knew he was expecting answers, Sam took a more subtle road, starting with easy questions, sympathy, and a nice, pleasant tone. Looks like Charlie worked that way too.

"Dean and I ran across Nick Colbert about seven months ago, he kidnapped us and told us that he was our father. John Winchester adopted us when we were babies, first Dean and then me later on. While we were "guests" at Nick's house we discovered that Seeth was our brother. When we escaped he came with us. If you look I'm sure Nick has a file somewhere." Although Sam took the discreet route when it came to asking questions he always believed answering them up front and straight was best.

Charlie was caught off guard for a moment. Sam had given him what he wanted, same information as when they had first talked but now Charlie could actually process it. Sam's directness was a little comforting; at least the man didn't seem to be trying to hide anything. "What does Nick want with you and Seeth, what's he going to do with you?" Charlie resisted asking about himself, he wasn't sure he wanted to know.

Thank to his "training" another interviewing skill Sam had was understanding the real question behind what was being said. "I don't know what Nick plans to do with any of us. My guess for Seeth and I is revenge. I don't think he was too happy when we left. For you, I'm not sure. He might try to use you as a bargaining chip. What I am sure about is Nick isn't likely to keep us in the area or stay in one spot for long. It's been at least twelve hours since we woke up and I have no idea how long we were out. I would say in the next couple hours someone is probably going to come to either move us or…" Sam let his sentence trail off; Charlie was a smart man and could guess where Sam was going with it.

Charlie looked down at his hands which were wrapped around his legs that he had drawn up to his chest. After a few seconds he looked up at the door, as if expecting someone to come through right then. No one did and Charlie found himself almost wishing that someone would. Working with the FBI had given him more confidence in himself and his abilities; he had learned how to take life as it was handed to him and without trying to hide behind his big brother. So amazingly instead of being scared out of his wits, well he was still scared just a little, he was anxious to find out what was going to happen. Seeing as nothing was going to happen too soon it was time for his next question. This is where his intellectual curiosity and need to know came in.

"You said that you guys never did anything that the cops are accusing you of, how do you explain all the evidence then?"

Sam let out a short laugh. "If you call that evidence."

"Then what is it?"

"Circumstance. Dean and I didn't do anything. We're, we're…" Sam paused, at least now they would have something to talk about he figured. "We're hunters."

"Hunters? That explains nothing," Charlie said, sitting up straighter and extending his legs, he was starting to get cramps from remaining in one spot for so long.

"I'm not talking about Yogi Bear." Sam added at Charlie's confused expression. "There are things in this world, things that most people don't know about. Dean and Sam, Seeth, we hunt those things."

Charlie was even more confused. What in the world did "hunting" have to do with the question. "What things?" As a mathematician he never liked the abstract.

Sam sighed and looked down before making eye contact with Charlie. "Spirits, demons, poltergeist, you know, horror movie stuff." Sam couldn't let out the small smile that crept onto his face at Charlie's inability to comprehend.

He didn't know what to say to that. Charlie just stared at Sam trying to comprehend what the man before him had just said. "What do you mean?"

"I told you it was a long story."

"But those things don't exist, you're making this up," Charlie had heard of people making up crazy excuses but this one took the cake.

"Sorry to burst your bubble."

"It's not scientifically, not mathematically possible."

"What's not?"

Charlie jumped to his feet and Sam moved ten feet back in less than a second. They both stared at the door that had opened.

"Hello son," Nick Colbert said, stepping into the room to allow the three men behind him with guns also come in. He had underestimated Sam and Dean once; he wasn't going to do it again.

Sam just glared at Nick. For a fleeting moment Sam contemplated ramming the man's head into a wall but when three guys walked in with guns Sam decided that probably wouldn't be a good move. Instead he squared his body, stood up tall, and tried to act as calm as possible. "Where's Seeth?"

"Waiting out in the truck, he's looking forward to seeing you," Nick responded. He met looks with Sam. Out of the corner of his eye he could see Charlie trying to disappear into a wall.

"Where are we going?" Sam asked, relieved that Seeth was at least alive.

"To visit an old friend of mine, he's also looking forward to seeing you. Put these on, hands in the back," Nick said, tossing a pair of handcuffs first in Sam's direction and then in Charlie's.

Sam thought for a moment about refusing but if putting the handcuffs on meant getting to Seeth quicker than he was just going to have to sallow his pride and do it. Sam stole a glance at Charlie; he seemed to be waiting for him to make the decision. There was no doubt in Sam's mind that wouldn't think twice about hurting Charlie so Sam bent down and put the handcuffs on, trying to keep them as loose as possible with it being noticeable. Charlie followed suit although Sam had to wonder how smart the man really was when he grimaced as the handcuffs bit into his skin. Sam just shook his head and walked toward the door which Nick had opened and stepped to the side to allow them through. When he walked past Nick he shot him a look that would have made ghosts turn cold. But he had to bite his tongue when he felt Nick grab his hands and squeeze the cuffs tighter. Sam swore a little bit of blood started to flow down his hands.

"Much better, now move."

**December 7****th**** at 10:00am**

"Damn it!"

Don slammed the door of his SUV after he crawled in. He had just interviewed the two men that Dean had described to him. According to Dean he had been staying at a friend's house with his brothers, Sam and Seeth. Three Winchesters, that was news to Don. Supposedly Dean had gone out while Sam and Seeth had stayed at the house. When he got back Sam and Seeth were gone and the two men were there, waiting for him. Dean got the younger one to admit he was working with Colbert and that they had taken his brothers to Mt. Lowe. That's when he went up there and saw the FBI.

Even if there hadn't been a smirk on Dean's face or sarcasm lacing his voice the whole time he had told the story Don was smart enough to know that it was a bullshit story. Don also believed that Dean was smart enough to know Don wasn't going to buy it. Especially after he went to the police station and they told him that a girl had recently been murdered in the house that the two men were found in. Apparently some anonymous caller had told the police that he had heard loud noises coming from the house and when the police went to investigate they found the two men tied up in the closet. A quick call to the girl's parents who were now back in town confirmed Don's suspicion that they didn't know a Dean, Sam, or Seeth Winchester.

Don was so absorbed with his frustration and anger at needing a known criminal's help that he jumped slightly when his phone rang. The number was unknown but Don answered it anyway, "Eppes."

"You seem a little upset, is something bothering you?"

It took Don a moment to place the voice but when he did he scowled, this was the last person he wanted to talk too. "Dean. How did you get my number?"

"I have my resources, you have yours. So what did you find out?"

Don hated the man's sarcastic voice, it was cocky and arrogant, not to mention downright annoying. "So when did you murder Cindy Hawkins?"

"I didn't. Stop trying to change the subject. Those two guys were low on the gangster totem pole. I'm guessing they weren't able to tell you much. If they had then you wouldn't need me and you would have the cops inside that building you're sitting in front of tracing this call."

Again, that damn arrogance. However, Dean had just admitted to being within eye sight of Don. Without trying to look too obvious, he started to scan the vicinity. "I got one name, Tom, that's where they planned to take Sam, and you."

"What about Seeth?"

Don look behind him without making it too obvious that he was looking for Dean, half his environment was a blind spot. "Colbert is keeping Seeth with him but he was going to take you two to Tom."

"Who's Tom? Did you get a last name or location?"

Looking in his rearview mirror helped but he still couldn't see most of what was behind him, "No."

"Alright then, I got some friends who might be able to help. Let's go."

Don nearly had a heart attack when his passenger door opened. That slight delay cost him and before he could get to his gun (damn seatbelt) Dean had one pointing at his chest.

"Hi," Dean said with the biggest smile on his face. He was enjoying messing with this agent way too much. 'Score, Dean two and Don zero,' he thought to himself.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" Don yelled when he finally calmed down enough to talk. He kept one eye on Dean but tried looking around to see if anyone had noticed, they were sitting in front of a police station. So far no one seemed to realize what was going on.

"I'm going to my friend's house, he should be able to help or find someone who can. You're coming with me," Dean said coolly, also keeping a watch on his surroundings. Jumping into a fed's car in front of a police precinct had probably been one of the stupider things he had ever done.

"You're already wanted for murder, torture, along with a million other things. Add to that you're a suspect in my brother's disappearance and now you're kidnapping a federal agent, no one is going to help you. All the resources that I have access to will be inaccessible." Don couldn't believe how this man had managed to evade the police for so long while pulling stunts like these.

Dean's smile dropped. "You know I didn't take your brother, you know that Sam and Seeth are innocent in this as well, hell they're the victims. And if you're as smart as I think you are then you can pull your head out of your ass, examine the evidence, and figure out I didn't do any of the stuff that you guys are saying I did. I like working with you as much as you like working with me but I'm going to need help tracking Nick down and apparently you're one of the best. Now, if I'm not mistaken you would also like to find your brother. Once we do that then we can go back to hating each other. Now give me your gun."

The two men stared at each other for about thirty seconds before Don, without averting his gaze, unsnapped his holster and handed over his gun. Dean also didn't look away while he ejected the magazine and then throw both pieces into the trunk of the SUV.

"Good, now drive that way," Dean said, pointing straight ahead.

After another forty seconds of the macho stare down Don averted his gaze and merged into the early rush hour traffic.

Dean let the smile creep back onto his face before saying, "Besides, what makes you think you're my only FBI contact."

**Alright everyone, once again I'm sorry for the delay. I'm going to try to write this as fast as possible but updates will probably be slower. School and work are really taking its toll on me. Anyway, I hope you enjoy the chapter and please remember to review.**


	8. Chapter 8

**December 7****th**** at 12:00pm**

"Man David, I've been reading up on this Nick Colbert guy and he is brutal. He's had his hand in torturing and killing at least a hundred people, they think the number could be as high as three hundred. Compared to Colbert the Winchesters are boy scouts. He definitely deserves his spot on the FBI's Top Ten," Colby said, flipping the file he was studying closed.

"I know, we had a couple of murders right before you joined in which Colbert was the main suspect. Needless to say we never caught him," David replied, taking his eyes off his computer for the first time in about a hour.

Colby shook his head in disbelief, how could anyone do what this an had done?

"You guys haven't heard from Don have you?" Megan asked walking up to Colby and David. It had been seven hours since Don had left and they hadn't received so much as a phone call to ask how the progress was going. Not that they would be able to give him anything, they hadn't even found a fingerprint to help them out, other than the ones in the cabin. When Megan had first suggested he head home to take a break she had hoped he would be gone for at least a hour. Five hours though was unbelievable, there was no way Don would stay away from the case this long.

"No." Colby and David replied in unison.

Megan let out a big sigh and collapsed in her chair. She flipped open a folder on her desk and stared at its contents. There was a picture of one of the guys that could have been at the cabin and some of his stats but Megan was registering any of it. Too much was on her mind right now. "What about leads, any new ideas as to where Charlie might be?" Megan knew it was a stupid question, they would have told her if there was anything to tell.

"Nothing, it's like they disappeared off the face of the Earth," David replied. He was getting worried and frustrated. Despite an entire office of FBI agent's working around the clock no one seemed to be able to find out where Charlie had been taken. On top of that his boss had been MIA for the past five hours.

"Something's wrong. I've called Don's cell phone, his house phone, and even Mr. Eppes. Don hasn't picked up and Mr. Eppes has no idea where he could be. Merrick is getting pissed and Hendrickson is close to getting the lead position on this case," Megan said, once again returning to the subject of where the hell Don could be. She was getting extremely worried and knew that something just wasn't right; Don should have been back by now.

"I agree," David said. There was no way Don would have been able to take a nap or lost track of time, not with Charlie missing. He was bad when Megan had been kidnapped but earlier this morning Don had been twenty times worse. "Why don't you get the GPS on his SUV and cell phone turned on, Colby and I can go track him down," David offered, not willing to just sit around here any longer.

Megan didn't even waste time answering; she just took off towards the tech room.

"What do you think could be keeping him?" Colby asked. He too was a little anxious about his boss's absence. He thought Don would have got to his car, maybe started it and decide that was enough of a break before turning around and coming back to up to the office.

"Nothing good," David replied simply.

Five minutes later and Megan was back with the location, at least his cell phone and car were together. "Call me as soon as you find him?"

"Will do," Colby said as he grabbed his jacket and followed David who was already halfway to the elevators.

_Later_

"Here it is," Colby said, pulling into the decrepit parking lot, Don's SUV was parked at the far end.

"And it doesn't look good," David replied, pulling out his gun just in case.

Colby pulled up and parked about twenty feet away, giving David and him plenty of room to approach with caution. No one jumped out at them as they approached and David even managed to get the door open without incident.

"Colby!" David yelled when he opened the driver side door and saw Don's cell phone lying on the seat. This was not good at all.

"Yeah," Colby said as he walked around from the back.

David held up Don's cell phone.

"Check this out," Colby said. He held up Don's FBI issued handgun ad the ejected magazine.

"Not good," David said. "Better get forensics out here, start dusting this off for fingerprints." David flipped open his cell phone and called the office.

Colby laid down the gun on the driver seat and let out a big sigh as he looked off in the direction of the highway.

**December 7****th**** at 2:30pm**

"Hey, take it easy!" Sam shouted when he saw Charlie grimace after his "escort" shoved him in the back.

"Shut up," the man who was holding onto Charlie said. Just too make sure Sam understood his point he punched the kid in the face. The guy holding onto Sam laughed and he smiled back.

The punch to his face hurt more than it should have due to the stinging cold wind. Los Angeles had been nice, a little chilly, but nice. Apparently though they had either traveled really far north or they had gone high up into the mountains. Judging by his difficulty breathing in the thin air Sam was betting on the mountains.

"Boys be nice," Nick called from a few feet away.

In order to avoid getting hit again Sam kept his mouth shut and stood still while the two men opened the back doors to the van. Sam had to hand it to Nick, he had been smart about transportation. He had rented one of those U-Haul moving vans. Unless Nick was speeding or ran a red light no cop was going to pull him over and if they did it would be highly unusual for them to look in the back. This also gave him a good excuse to be crossing state borders. When they had first stepped out of the house Sam had seen a black car pull away, he was guessing that the car was going ahead to check for roadblocks. If there was one Nick could simply climb in the back with Sam, Seeth, and Charlie.

When the doors finally opened Sam could feel his temperature and heart rate rise despite the frigid air. Even from several feet away Sam could see blood matting Seeth's hair and sticking on his clothes. The youngest Winchester was unconscious no question. He hadn't even flinched when the door opened and the icy air flooded the van, Seeth was only wearing jeans and a T-shirt. Sam was fuming by the time Nick stepped around the corner. So much of his focus was on Seeth that he didn't realize what Nick was doing until Charlie shouted his name, by that time it was too late. Nick hooked his own leg around Sam's while punching him in the face. Sam fell flat on his back and groaned when his head made contact with the ground while his cuffed hands cut into his back.

Nick bent down on his knees, putting his mouth within inches of Sam's ear. "What the hell is wrong with my son?" He growled real low.

It didn't take a genius to figure out that Nick was talking about Seeth and why he wasn't healing. Sam let out a small smile, mainly to irritate Nick even more. "I don't know what you're talking about." Sam didn't anticipate being punched again. His vision waned for a minute and he felt blood start to seep down his cheek. At least his nose wasn't broken; well he hoped it wasn't broken.

"Why the hell is he not healing himself?!" Nick asked, this time yelling into Sam's ear.

"Oh that," Sam replied innocently. "We killed a demon, and that took away our powers." Sam smiled again when he saw the enraged look on Nick's face.

It took everything he had not to kill Sam right there and then. The only thing that kept his middle child alive was the fact that Nick would lose out on a lot of money if Sam died. So instead of pulling out his gun Nick stood up calmly. He took one last look at Sam before he kicked the boy in his side and walked towards the front of the vehicle, "Get them loaded up."

Sam couldn't bite back the short yelp and cuss word that came out when Nick kicked him in the side. A searing pain quickly traveled from the spot where the steel toe boot had touched and traveled up and down his side. Before he could even get to a point where the pain was manageable Sam felt someone grab his arms, lift him off the ground throw him in the back of the van. The movement jarred his side and chance would have it he landed on his hurt ribs. Sam drew in a sharp breath but that irritated his side even more, there had to be at least one cracked rib. There were black dots dancing in front of him and it was hard to focus his vision. He felt the van shift and he knew that Charlie had been loaded in as well. The slam of the back doors jolted him back to reality and he suddenly remembered Seeth.

He pushed the pain of his side out of his mind and carefully scooted towards the back of the van where Seeth was still lying. It was hard to maneuver but Sam eventually was able to press two fingers against his brother's wrist and couldn't help but feel as if a giant weight had been lifted off his shoulders. Seeth had a heartbeat, it was slow but steady. Scooting himself back around to face his brother Sam took in Seeth's injuries. There were a couple deep scratches across Seeth's face; one particularly nasty cut ran the length of his forehead, that explained the blood. There were already some ugly looking bruises forming on his brother's face and arms, Sam could only guess what his body looked like underneath the shirt. The thing that worried Sam the most was a huge blotch of blood on Seeth's shoulder. Perhaps a bullet, Sam didn't want to think about it. It had at least stopped bleeding though from what Sam could see. Seeth's breaths were hitched, swallow, and slow.

"Is he okay?"

Sam had almost forgotten Charlie was there until he heard the man's quiet whisper. It was as if Charlie was afraid to breathe too hard as it might hurt Seeth, or, probably more likely, he was afraid Sam would take it out on him. Sam took a deep breath and looked towards the other man, "He's pretty banged up but I think he'll be fine," Sam said, hoping he was right.

As the van started to move Charlie was jolted forward but he quickly scooted back against the wall, as far away from the unconscious man as possible. He may have helped Don on countless cases and even seen the photos but he had never seen someone in this condition in person. Well there was that time when the bank robbers, the "Charm School boys," had started a little war on a public street. Charlie hadn't done well then and he wasn't doing well right now. There was a lot of blood, a lot more than he had ever seen, expect maybe at the bank. How could anyone be alive after losing that much blood? "Where do you think they are taking us?" Charlie asked, desperate to get his focus off of the bloody person in front of him.

"I don't know, it feels like we're traveling downhill so we're most likely leaving a mountain. I doubt he kept us where we were originally. Although there wouldn't be many places we could go up here. Besides, I've read some of the files that you helped the FBI on, shouldn't you be able to figure this out?" Sam asked jokingly, trying to lighten the mood. It was painfully obvious how much Charlie wanted to throw up.

"I…I," Charlie stammered. Sam was right; he should be able to figure something out, find out where they were most likely to be taken. For some reason though it was as if his mind had turned to mush. He couldn't keep a line of thought going for more than a few minutes and no specific equations or algorithms came to him that would be particularly useful. Plus he didn't know how long he had been out and where they were at the moment. He did know that they had been awake for about seventeen to twenty hours but who knows how long the drug had kept them unconscious and… 'Wait a minute,' he thought to himself. Before Nick had come in hadn't Sam just told him he hunted demons and ghosts? And how in the world did he read the FBI cases that he had helped with.

"Wait, what were you talking about back there, demons and ghosts?" Charlie asked, a little abruptly.

'So much for him forgetting,' Sam thought to himself. He had hoped Nick's sudden appearance and the being shoved in a moving van would take Charlie's mind off of what he had said. "I told you. Demons, ghosts, they exist. Dean, Seeth and I hunt them. Dean and I have always hunted them, our father taught us how. Seeth started when he joined us."

"You mean John Winchester taught you, or does Nick Colbert hunt the unicorns and Santa Claus too?" Charlie couldn't help the sarcasm, Sam was taking him for a fool and Charlie didn't appreciate that.

Sam couldn't help but think of Dean and his little joke about unicorns when Charlie mentioned them, he let out a little laugh. "Yes Nick Colbert hunts them too but John Winchester, our father, taught us. My mother, Mary Winchester, was killed by a demon when I was six months old, Seeth's mom, my biological mother, also was killed by a demon when Seeth was six months old. That's how my dad and Nick got into the hunting scene."

"What's the significance of six months?" Charlie asked.

Sam was a little taken back; Charles Eppes was indeed pretty smart. "That is too long of a story to get into but there is significance. In short the demon that killed our mothers was there on our sixth month birthday to do something and our mom's got in the way."

"What did he do to you?" Charlie couldn't believe he was asking these questions. It didn't mean that he believed any of this BS that Sam was telling him, there was no way he could believe any of it.

Sam started, he hadn't expected that question, hadn't meant to lead Charlie to that question. Hell, he hadn't even told Dean yet, he wouldn't tell Dean. "Nothing," Sam said, suddenly a little uneasy.

Charlie noticed the change in attitude and he could tell that Sam had just lied. No, this whole time he had been lying, right? Yes, there was no such thing as ghosts. "So you blame all those crimes you committed on ghosts?"

"Yes, well not all of them were ghosts; the most serious charges were the result of a shapeshifter. Although the credit card fraud charges are true. Hunting is exactly a six figure job you know."

Charlie couldn't believe this guy, he thought Sam was smart. Hadn't this guy gone to Stanford and hadn't he maintained a 4.0 GPA. How could someone like that believe any of this stuff? "What is a shapeshifter?"

"Does that really matter? Come on, you don't really believe anything I'm saying?" Sam said, feeling suspiciously like Dean at the moment as he cracked a big smile.

**December 7****th**** at 5:25pm**

Don let out a big sigh as he shifted his hands again. Having them handcuffed behind his back while sitting in a car wasn't the most comfortable thing ever. Now he knew why criminals always leaned forward when riding in the back of a squad car. He had to admit though; this was a much better ride than a police vehicle. He usually didn't care for loud obnoxious cars; in fact it was usually the owner of these cars that he had to deal with. Not that the owner of this car was anymore more innocent than the others.

On the other hand Dean was all smiles and giggles. Despite the severity of the situation he couldn't help but feel proud of himself, he had got the drop on a FBI agent. He had made Don drive them about ten minutes from the police station where he had parked the Impala. Once there they had abandoned Don's vehicle and cell phone and climbed into the Impala. The satisfaction he had gotten when putting the cuffs on Don had been evident and Dean knew that the agent's pride was hurting, bad. Consequently the ride thus far had been quiet, well, with the exception of Dean's music.

"Where are we going?" Don asked, finally breaking the silence. He might be able to weasel some information out of Dean.

"To see Bobby, a friend of mine," Dean replied.

"Where is that?"

"You'll see."

'Aaaaahhhh,' Don screamed silently, this man was unbearable. He shifted once again, the cuffs were either digging into his back or his hands, it was impossible to get comfortable. "Why are you taking me, I would be more valuable to you if I had access to my resources." Don was trying to get a read on Dean. Yes, Megan was the profiler on the team but he had taken some classes in college and training, plus he had picked up some stuff from Megan. So far though none of that had come in handy, he should have known though, even Megan hadn't been able to put her finger on Sam and Dean.

"I told you, you aren't my only FBI buddy," Dean said, putting emphasis on the "buddy." "Besides…" Dean stopped when his cell phone began to ring. "Hello."

_Pause_

"How are you doing?"

_Pause_

"Yeah I have him."

_Pause_

"No, I didn't hurt him," Dean sad, sounding slightly offended.

_Pause_

"Yeah, Nick Colbert took them. He's taking them to someone named Tom."

_Pause_

"No that's all he got."

_Pause_

"Fine," Dean said. He pulled over to the side of the road and pressed the phone up against Don's ear. "He wants to talk to you."

Don looked at Dean carefully before talking into the phone. "Hello."

**Look at that guys, I updated twice in a week's time. I guess this is in honor of Supernatural being back last week. And Numb3rs two weeks ago. As always I hope you enjoyed and please read and review.**


	9. Chapter 9

**Just as a reminder this takes place before the Numb3rs season 3 finale so before the Janus List episode but after we meet Dwayne Carter.**

**December 7****th**** at 5:25pm**

"Don," Colby Granger said hesitantly. He knew this was not going to go well.

Don's face screwed up in confusion. He didn't place the name at first. Two seconds later and Don wished that he never did recognize the voice. "Colby?" He was still hoping beyond hope that he was wrong.

"Don, listen…" Colby said before his boss cut him off.

"So help me Colby if you have anything to do with Charlie's disappearance I'll kill you!" Don yelled. 'Damn Colby, how could he do this?' Don thought to himself.

"Don listen," Colby said, struggling to remain calm. Don had a right to be upset but he didn't deserve this.

"I told you Colby. I gave you another chance. You better hope I don't get out of this," Don threatened. He had failed to identify a dangerous FBI agent, maybe even a traitor. Hell, he had failed to protect his own brother.

"Don listen!" Colby finally yelled. He waited a few moments to make sure Don was indeed going to listen. Just as he was about to talk he was cut off again.

"Hey, Colby hang on just a bit," Don said as he brought the phone back to his ear. Don gave him a dirty look. "Give me your hands," Dean said as he laid the cell phone down on his lap.

"What?" Don asked, extremely upset that Dean had just interrupted his conversation.

"I'm tired of holding the phone. Let me undo the cuffs," Dean said impatiently.

It took a moment for Don's brain to register what Dean was trying to do but when his gray matter finally got around to it he turned around so Dean could uncuff him.

Dean did so and took the cuffs and keys and stashed them in the driver's side door before handing the cell phone back to Don.

For his part Don rubbed his wrists, thankful to finally have them free. He took the cell phone when Dean offered it and didn't waste time being polite. "What?"

"Don, please just listen," Colby said, just glad that they hadn't been disconnected. He hated working with the Winchesters.

"Talk," Don said shortly, not trusting himself to say much more.

Dean could hear what Colby was saying, owning to the fact that he loved keeping his cell phone volume as high as it could go. So while still paying attention to the conversation and without Don realizing it Dean pulled the car back onto the road and started driving to Bobby's.

"Don I promise that I had nothing to do with Charlie's disappearance," Colby said first, getting that out of the way. The fact that Don could even suggest that he had would harm Charlie hurt him, it showed just how little trust his boss really had in him.

"You really haven't given me any indication that I should believe you," Don said coldly.

Choosing to ignore the comment Colby went on, "Nick Colbert is the one behind this, I'm sure Dean has already told you. I've worked with Dean before; he's not what the files say he is." This was going to be tricky. Although Colby had never lied to Don about him knowing Dean, it wasn't exactly something that he ever counted on sharing.

Don shot Dean an angry glare. Who the hell was this man? How did Colby know him?

Dean noticed Don's look after Colby mentioned that the two of them knew each other. 'I guess that puts a damper on our relationship,' Dean said, judging by the look on Don's face.

When Don didn't say anything Colby continued, "I won't go into detail about how I know him, Dean can tell you. But you can trust Dean…"

"You know that word is being thrown around a lot and it seems like the people who keep repeating it are the ones that can't be trusted," Don said.

"Don please. He'll be able to help you find Charlie, I promise. I know that you don't want to trust me but if you do you'll find that I'm right. I just called to let you know that the FBI knows you're missing. David and I find your car and gun. Dean's prints showed up on the SUV. Tell him to be more careful. It's believed that Dean, Sam, and Colbert are all working together with about eight other men. Do you have a pen and paper you can write on, I can give you the names."

Don didn't say or do anything for a second. He couldn't believe what was happening. Charlie had been kidnapped, he had been kidnapped by a man he was supposed to be searching for, and Colby was working with a known felon. How had all this happened?

"Do you have anything to write on?"

Colby's voice cut through Don's thoughts and he looked over at Dean, knowing full well that he could hear their conversation. The volume of the cell phone was unreal and based on how loud Dean played his music Don guessed that Dean regularly kept it this loud so he could hear.

With a guilty look on his face Dean handed Don an crumpled old receipt with a pen.

"Alright I got it," Don said, looking back over at Dean when he saw the signature on the receipt, Dean just looked straight ahead.

"Here they are, Seeth Colbert, Pete Williks, Greg Bontaro, Kyle Ilsur, Henry Tompkins, Jerry Brick, Ben Voltur, and Mike Renfield," Colby rattled off the names slowly. "Got them all?"

"Yeah, Nick has a son?" Don asked, noticing Seeth's last name.

"Yes, not much is known about the kid but I think he's only nineteen or twenty, somewhere around there. He's suspected to help his dad but with what we don't know. This is only the second crime scene we've ever found his fingerprints at," Colby said, trying to remember what he had read about the kid. There really wasn't much to read or remember. "Alright I have to go but Don, please just help Dean. He'll be able to help you find Charlie more so than anyone here at the FBI. I'll keep you two posted on what's going on and let you know if we get any leads." With that Colby hung up, he really did have to get back, he had told Megan and David he was going to the restroom.

Don flipped Dean's cell phone shut and handed it back. He looked closer at the names, seeing if he recognized any of them. The first four he had already known about but he didn't know any of the others. Turning the receipt back over he looked once again at the signature on it. "So I can trust you Abu Laden?" Sarcasm and anger laced Don's voice.

"I never said I wasn't guilty of everything," Dean said quickly, knowing it wouldn't help. "Those are the guys that are with Nick," Dean said more as a statement than a question.

"Yeah," Don said, looking at the names again. He looked back up at Dean and decided it was time for some answers, "How do you and Colby know each other?"

Dean sighed; he wished that Colby hadn't mentioned that they knew each other. Although Dean hadn't pretty much blown that by how he had spoken with Colby. There would have been no way that Don would have not picked up on the fact that Dean and Colby knew each other. Trying to keep his answer as vague as possible Dean said, "I helped him out with a problem a while back."

"What kind of problem?" Don asked, looking out the window, still not believing the situation he was in.

"The kind of problem that my brothers and I deal with," Dean said. Knowing that is was futile but trying anyway Dean prayed that Don would stop this line of questioning.

"Who'd kill for him?" That was the only thing that Don could think of. However, even as he said it he didn't believe it. Yes Colby may have lied to him, twice, may be a traitor to the United States of America, but cold blood murder, Don didn't think Colby had it in him. Don knew it would get a rouse out of Dean though so the comment helped, even if it wasn't true.

It took all of Dean's will power not to stop the car and engage in round 2 of Dean vs. Don. So, realizing that this wasn't going to stop until Don got his answer Dean decided to give it to him. "A ghost, actually a spirit and I didn't kill it for him, the person was already dead. Sam and I just salted and burned the bones."

Don wasn't sure he had heard Dean at first or if he had suddenly fallen asleep and was dreaming. 'What the hell did he just say?! A spirit?' Don thought to himself. He knew that Dean Winchester's sarcasm and smugness was his signature but this was going too far. His brother's life was on the line here and if Dean was dragging him all over God's green earth because he forgot to take his pills Don was going to kill the man right here and now. "You expect me to believe that?"

"No," Dean answered frankly. "But it is the truth; my job is hunting the things that most people only see in their nightmares. The murders and tortures you guys accused me of, that was a shapeshifter. The grave discretions, that's a bad side effect of having to get to the remains of spirits, poltergeists, and the like. The credit card fraud, that's real but hunting isn't exactly a six figure job. The breaking and entering, that's also a side effect of the job but you'll notice that nothing has ever been taken, at least nothing of real value. So all that stuff that you have on me, most of it is bad evidence."

During his years at the FBI Don thought he had heard every excuse in the book but this one; it was almost too crazy not to be real. What kind of person could make this up? Dean Winchester apparently. "If I don't believe you?" 'Because nobody with the intelligence above a four year old,' Don added to himself.

Dean yanked the steering wheel hard to the right and parked the car on the side of the road. Without saying a word he got out and went around to the back of the Impala. Predictably Don followed. Once Don had come up Dean popped the trunk. He stood back and let Don inspect the contents of the trunk. Whether Don believed him or not really didn't matter but there was another reason why Dean had chosen to stop.

Don had to brace against the door when Dean jerked hard to the right to keep from slamming into it. He watched in amazement and disbelief when Dean calmly got out of the car and walked towards the rear. Don slowly got out and followed, not sure what the man was up. They were, after all, in the middle of the desert. Just as he was about to ask what was going on Dean popped the trunk. Instinctively Don took a step back before he walked forward cautiously. The entire trunk of the car was filled with weapons, shot guns, crossbows, pistols, knives. Then, upon closer inspection, Don found some not so threatening things. Water, journals, a few books that had titles Don couldn't pronounce, looked some of them were even in Latin, and some that Don didn't want to read. Other than the weapons and miscellaneous objects there were three army green duffel bags that probably would have fared better if they had been used during WW2. "Why are you showing me this?" This wasn't helping Dean prove his point.

"This is what we use to fight the baddies. Have you ever found a dead body with a arrow sticking out of it, or one that was killed with a shot gun and was attributed to us. No, because we don't use these on people. Look, I don't care whether you believe me or not but right now my main priority is finding my brothers. So you can either get back in the car or start walking," Dean said bluntly. To drive his point home Dean slammed the trunk closed and walked back to the driver side. He got in and started the car. Sure enough Don was getting in just three seconds later.

Just because Don got into the car didn't mean he believed Dean. In fact he still thought the guy was off his meds and should be admitted. However, Charlie's life was at stake and Don would do anything to get his brother back. If that meant helping a fugitive then so be it. Don knew that there was a great possibility he would be going to jail after this, or at least lose his job but as long as Charlie was safe that was all that mattered. He sensed Dean felt the same way about his two younger brothers, that was why this was going to work, this "partnership." That was, until the younger brothers were safe, then the chase was back on.

There was about twenty minutes of silence between the two men before Don finally broke it. "One more thing, why are you even bothering to bring me along?"

Without looking over at Don Dean replied, "Because Colby asked me too. He knew that I would be able to find Nick before the FBI and thought that you would want to help, be there to get Charlie." Dean didn't mention the part about Colby saying he would need Don's help when they finally caught up to Nick. Dean didn't need any fed's help.

Don shook his head. He had no idea what to think about Colby but what Dean had said was true. Don would do what it took to get Charlie back. He looked back over at Dean and could see the worry etched on his face. Just like he had seen it in his apartment when he had first met Dean, it was something only another big brother would notice. He knew that Dean had to be desperate, he wouldn't have brought along an FBI agent unless he was. "What makes you think that I won't just turn you in?"

Dean smiled at this question. He had been waiting for this one. "Because you want to find your brother as well. Because for the past thirty minutes your hands have been free and you have been able to reach my gun before me. Because you had the opportunity to escape just twenty minutes ago but choose instead to get back in the car." Pretending to ignore Don's frustrated look and act humble Dean picked up his cell phone to call Bobby, time to start using his resources. The older man would be about four hours out from L.A. Dean knew of a motel about three miles down the road, he would tell Bobby to meet them there.

**December 8****th**** at 7:00am**

Sam shifted slightly from his position once again. They had been stuck in the back of this truck for at least sixteen hours now. Charlie had fallen asleep and Seeth was still unconscious. Sam was starting to get worried about his younger brother. Seeth's breathing had slowed almost to the point of stopping and while it picked back up every time, it also got slower and took longer to return to normal each time. A few minutes after they had started driving Seeth had begun shivering. Sam had taken off a couple of his layers and laid them on top of his brother but nothing changed, except now Sam was also shivering. In contrast, Seeth's forehead was burning, Sam was guessing a fever of around 100, maybe even more. In just the past couple of minutes it seemed to be getting better but without a thermometer there was no way Sam could be sure.

As the truck bounced violently up and down Sam heard Charlie moan. The math professor seemed to have smacked his head against the walls of the van. "Hello sunshine," Sam said trying to keep the mood as light as possible; he suspected he was failing miserably.

Charlie let out a small groan and rubbed the back of his head, it would be sore for a while. He felt the truck start to go over a bump again and quickly sat up straight. "How long was I asleep?" Charlie waited a couple more seconds before leaning back against the wall, just to make sure they weren't going to go over anymore bumps.

"About five or six hours, maybe seven. You slept through most of the night. It started getting light in here again about thirty minutes ago. I'm guessing it's between 7:00 and 8:30," Sam responded. They had been loaded into the van in the early evening and the light had steadily faded as time wore on. It was finally getting brighter again. He had done his best to sleep but he was too worried about Seeth. Every few minutes he had checked his brother's vitals. Over the past months Sam had come to appreciate Dean more and more as he finally knew what it felt like to be a big brother. But he had never realized how much of burden it could be until this moment.

Charlie's eyes scanned over Seeth's prone form. It looked like he hadn't moved much. Sam was sitting right beside him and Charlie noticed that his jacket was now on Seeth. He couldn't help but notice that Sam was also shivering now. "How's he doing?"

"I think he's starting to become stable. His fever is starting to go down and all the bleeding has stopped. His breathing is irregular though, he seems to be having a hard time with it," Sam said, looking over at Seeth, as if too make sure he wasn't lying.

Charlie didn't know what to say. He had never been in Sam's position. He was the little brother, Don was the big brother. Charlie knew that being a big brother was harder; there was a responsibility there that just didn't exist when you were the baby. Charlie remembered when he was six and he had broken his arm, Don hadn't left his side for days. The only comparison Charlie had was how he felt when he knew Don was going into dangerous situations. Thinking back to when Don had been grazed by that bullet during the fire fight at the bank Charlie multiplied that feeling by ten times. He figured that was the closest he was going to come to knowing how Sam felt right now.

"The truck stopped once, probably for a bathroom break. That was a hour or two ago so I don't think we'll be stopping anytime soon. It's also getting slightly warmer. That could be the sun coming up or we could be traveling south. We should be able to tell in a couple hours, after the sun has come up all the way." Sam was just trying to make small talk; he needed to get his mind off Seeth. This was too much, being an older brother.

"Do you have any idea where we might be headed?" Charlie asked.

"No. Nick wants revenge but I have no idea how he plans on doing it. His first priority is probably getting as far away from California as possible. With you in tow everyone is going to be looking for us," Sam said. They had gone over and this a million times but each time the conversation was always the same. Charlie would ask where they were going; Sam would say he didn't know. Not that Sam blamed Charlie; it was hell not knowing what was going to happen.

"What about your other brother, Dean? Wouldn't Nick want him as well?" Charlie asked. He hadn't thought much about Dean, a little grateful that he wasn't stuck with him but other than that Charlie's thoughts had been centered on the immediate situation.

Sam was a little surprised, that was a new question. Charlie hadn't brought up Dean since he had first woken up from the drug. He figured Charlie was just thankful he wasn't stuck with the oldest Winchester. Despite what Sam had told him and even though they now experienced that "I was kidnapped with you" bond Sam had a feeling that Charlie still didn't quite believe him. Sam shouldn't expect too much out of Charlie. After all, he was a math professor. "Nick might leave an obvious trail for Dean to follow; he knows Dean won't stop until he finds us. Hopefully it will obvious for the FBI as well," Sam said.

Charlie nodded his head slowly in agreement with Sam. Sounded like Dean and Don might have something in common. Charlie trusted that if anyone could find the trail it would be his brother.

It was five minutes before anyone made another sound and when the small groan spread throughout the truck it wasn't Sam or Charlie. Sam looked down and his heart skipped a beat when Seeth's head moved slightly. "Seeth," Sam said hesitantly and quietly, like he might scare Seeth back into unconsciousness.

His head felt like it had been beat for a week with a sledge hammer, swung by Muhammad Ali. His ribs were on fire and he could feel a broken one scraping something inside. Point is, it hurt like hell. He thought he heard Sam say something but he wasn't sure what, or if it was even his brother. It was a struggle to open his eyes but he finally managed to do it. The first thing he noticed when his body became aware of more than pain was the sensation of moving and the whirl of an engine. He was in some kind of vehicle, a truck, or van judging by how far high up the top was.

"Seeth."

There was that voice again, and this time a face came with it. Sam's head appeared at the side of his vision. Ugh, that was not something he wanted to see right when he woke up. "Get your fugly head away from me," he managed to groan out.

Sam let out something along the lines of a laugh with a relieved sigh mixed in. Respecting Seeth's wishes Sam sat back down and gave his brother a little space.

Charlie suddenly felt awkward, out of place. How was he supposed to react? Was he supposed to say anything? When Sam laughed slightly at Seeth's comment Charlie became confused. The guy had been unconscious for half a day and the first thing he does when he wakes up is throw insults at his brother. However, when he thought about it Don and his relationship wasn't much different. And besides, judging from Sam's reaction the insult hadn't really meant any harm. Trying to relax Charlie decided he would just sit here in his corner until they addressed him.

"How are you feeling?" Sam asked, although he could already guess Seeth's answer from the pain on the boy's face.

"Peachy," Seeth replied weakly. The pain in his ribs was steadily increasing, probably from the faster breathing now that he was awake. The headache, thankfully, was lessening to a more manageable level.

"Can you sit up?" Sam doubted it but he needed to know what Seeth was able to do if he ever wanted to escape. Most importantly, was he going to be able to walk out of here or would Sam have to carry him.

Seeth thought about that one for a moment, he didn't think he could. His body felt weak. Testing his strength carefully Seeth raised an arm slightly off the ground, the effort that took astonished him. With the same amount of exertion that a marathon would take Seeth slowly got up on his elbows and started to push up. His body got to maybe a thirty degree angle before a sharp, fiery pain shot down his side and he hissed though his clenched teeth.

Seeing the difficulty his brother was having Sam reached over and placed one of his hands on his brother's back to keep him from slamming back into the ground. After about three minutes Sam was able to successfully help Seeth into a sitting position against the wall of the van.

It had taken him forever to sit up and now it was taking twice as long for him to catch his breath. The pain had increased ten fold and his headache was back just as strong as ever from the exertion and concentration he had put into moving. Black spots were dancing in front of his eyes, and he came close to blacking out. It was another five minutes before he could see anything clearly let alone talk. When his senses finally came back to him Seeth looked around, yep, definitely in a van. His eyes fell on Charlie, who was staring right back at him. "Who are you?"

"Charlie," Charlie answered back. He had been watching the whole thing. If he understood everything then it meant the person who did this to Seeth was Nick. How could a father do that to his son? Never in his life could Charlie remember his dad even raising his voice.

Seeth glanced over at Sam for conformation. His line of work didn't exactly encourage trust in strangers, even more so, the first nineteen years of his life he had never had someone who was worthy of his trust.

"Nick got him at the cabin. Wrong time, wrong place," Sam said, looking over at Charlie for the first time since Seeth woke up. The man had remained where he was but Sam could see he was slightly tenser than he had been. The files that the FBI had on them must be pretty bad.

Charlie nodded his head in agreement.

"Seeth," Sam said gently but hesitantly. He knew that his brother had just woken up and was most likely in a lot of pain but there wasn't much he could do for him at the moment. However, if Seeth knew where they were going they could start to formulate a plan.

"Yeah, I know where he's taking us," Seeth responded, reading his brother's mind. Nick had mentioned Tom before he had knocked Seeth out and that was all Seeth needed to know.

Charlie scooted forward when he heard this. Finally, he could get some answers.

"A guy named Tom, he's an old friend of Nick's," Seeth said, pausing. This was going to take a lot of explaining to do and neither Sam nor Charlie were going to be happy. Hell, he got chills just thinking about the place. For some reason his back started to burn, old memories perhaps.

"Who is he?" Sam asked, impatient and wanting to get on with it.

"He lives down in Georgia, in a town called Brent. The town is huge, it covers a lot of land but the official population is relatively small. About seven hundred maybe, probably less. It's a big farming area, that's all they do."

"What do you mean by the official population?" Charlie was pretty sure that the answer wasn't going to be good.

"With a population that small they need some help running the farms and for a long time the town was too poor to hire help. So they started using criminals to do the labor, if someone broke the law they usually went to work for the family that they hurt. So say Joe 1 stole some food from Joe 2's shop, Joe 1 would have to work for Joe 2. Well, Brent, Georgia doesn't have a lot of criminals so they started getting some from other towns. A few years went by and the criminals they were sending down there never came back. The other towns and cities around them got suspicious so they stopped that. To replace the lost labor they started picking up homeless people, hookers, people that no one would miss. Those unmissed people were forced to work in the fields. That lasted for a while but the town grew, the farming industry took off and they needed more labor. The people were so use to not paying for labor that they didn't want to, so they started kidnapping people. Pretty soon they were hiring others to go out and find labor for them. Brent, Georgia is a throw back to the slave days. Tom is the slave auctioneer," Seeth stopped, letting that sink in. Sam and Charlie's faces were full of disbelief.

"That…That's impossible," Charlie finally managed to stutter out. "Somebody would notice."

"Don't believe me if you want but its true. Nick is running low on funds, he's taking you and Dean there to make money," Seeth said, nodding at Sam. "My guess is that's what he plans on doing with you as well." This time Seeth looked over at Charlie.

"You're sure?" Sam asked. His brain not being able to function at the moment so he was just trying to buy time for him to think.

"Yeah," Seeth said a little upset. Why would Sam question him? Why would Sam think that he was lying about something like this?

'Well this isn't good,' Sam thought to himself. He briefly thought about the time when he was caught by those redneck hillbillies that liked to hunt humans. Sam had hunted all sorts of creatures and now he was, in one of the most dangerous spots in his life and it was due to humans. At least the supernatural followed rules.

**Alright everyone, you know the drill, please review. Let me know what you guys think of this Tom situation. **


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

**Hey everyone, I went through and edited the previous chapters a little bit, nothing too drastic, just changed the timing and everything, trying to make the story flow a little better. I put up the day and time that everything is happening at, mainly to keep me on track. You'll notice that in this chapter we go back a little bit, next chapter we will start where we left off with Sam, Charlie, and Seeth. Sorry if this causes any confusion, you shouldn't have to go back and reread though. Nothing about the content changed. Hope you enjoy and as always read and review.**

**December 7****th**** at 2:30pm**

Megan sighed as she looked at her watch. She ran her hands through her hair, wishing she could just pull it all out. Glancing over to her left she could see Hendrickson leaning over a desk with a couple of other agents. As soon as Don's SUV had been found Merrick had declared the cocky, arrogant bastard lead agent on the case. Of course, she couldn't expect much less. Putting Don and his team on this case had been risky from the start and now that their boss was missing there were just too many personal ties. Twenty minutes ago Don had been declared officially missing; it was highly suspected that the people who took Charlie also took Don. She grabbed her keys off her desk; it was time to go tell Mr. Eppes that his two sons were in the hands of a killer. She should just call him, it would save about a two hours worth of time but she couldn't bring herself to do it. Alan deserved to be told in person.

Colby had been thinking the same thing from his own desk. Mr. Eppes deserved to know about Don and Charlie. Well, he already knew about Charlie and he was worried about Don. They had called him when they were trying to find Don but hadn't called him since. Although Colby didn't know Alan as well as Megan or David he still liked and respected the man. Any person who could put up with Don and Charlie deserved the great admiration. That's why this was so difficult, he didn't want Mr. Eppes to suffer anymore than he had too but he didn't want to screw himself over either. The FBI wouldn't take too kindly to knowing that Colby had aided Dean in kidnapping an agent, even if it was going to help find Charlie. Even just admitting he had at one time known Dean and Sam Winchester would probably land him out of a job. The FBI could think that Nick and Sam and Dean had Don, that might help broaden the search, help in finding Charlie but there was no need for Alan to believe he could be potentially sonless.

He knew Megan had been putting off on going to the Eppes house so when he heard her finally grab her keys he rushed over. "Tell you what, let me go tell him. You are needed here more than I am. Plus, the news is bad enough," trying to lighten mood, "we don't want him to have to look at you."

That earned a small laugh from Megan. She hesitated still though; it should be either her or David that went. Colby and Mr. Eppes certainly knew each other but not as well. However Colby was right, Merrick was already threatening to take them off the case and when she had asked to leave to go inform Mr. Eppes he had nearly popped a blood vessel. No offense to Colby but he wouldn't be missed as much. It was still better than just calling. "Alright," Megan finally said. "Call me if you or Mr. Eppes need anything!" Megan shouted at Colby's retreating back.

Colby had turned away quickly, hoping Megan wouldn't notice the relief/concern on his face. Relief that he would be able to alleviate some of Alan's worries and concerned at just how well this was going to go. He trusted Alan for the most part but he wasn't sure how he was going to take this. Colby would just have to make sure he knew that he had Charlie and Don's best interests in mind.

Although it was only about three o'clock the roads were already congested. Consequently it took about forty minutes to get to the Eppes house. Before he even got out of the SUV Alan was on the porch. The normally easy going expression on Alan's face had been replaced by lines of worry and dark bags under his eyes from not sleeping. Although he thought it would have been impossible the man's face fell and grew older when he realized it was Colby stepping out of the vehicle. He had been expecting Don. As he got closer he could see tears start well up in Alan's eyes, Colby's heart dropped. He had always wanted to eventually be a father but could he accept this much responsibility. In order to try and prevent the man from having a breakdown Colby quickly reassured the man that he wasn't here to deliver bad news but they should step inside. Alan's face lifted slightly.

"The house is a mess, I'm sorry," Alan Eppes commented, fatigue lacing his voice. It had been two days since this nightmare had started, they were now starting on the third day.

"It's okay, really," Colby replied. He could see the couch had been slept on; there were dirty dishes in the sink and half eaten plates of food laying on the counters and tables. He followed Alan into the kitchen where the man put a cup of coffee on. Colby was half dead already from the lack of sleep so he didn't protest. When Mr. Eppes finally turned around and looked at him Colby figured it was time to tell him. "Don is okay," Colby said, best to get that out of the way.

Alan breathed a sigh of relief. Ever since Megan had called to let him know that Don hadn't been back to work after they had sent him home he had been almost psychotic. His two sons were missing, his family, the only people who mattered to him.

Now came the hard part. "Don is with Dean Winchester." The little bit of relief disappeared from Alan's face and Colby swore some anger came along with the worry.

When Don had stopped by for those five minutes he had mentioned briefly that the suspects were primarily Sam and Dean Winchester and Nick Colbert. Having nothing better to do Alan had looked the names up. Not much came up on the Winchesters but he had gotten too many hits for Colbert. He supposed that if Don was going to be with anyone than he rather it be Winchester than Colbert. But hadn't Colby just said that Don was fine, not in danger. "But I thought you said…" his sentence trailed off, he was lost in what was left of his mind.

Colby realized that Don must have told his father who the kidnappers might be. "I did and Don is safe. Dean and Sam Winchester are the ones responsible, Nick Colbert is. Nick kidnapped Sam and Seeth, the third Winchester. Charlie unfortunately was in the wrong place at the wrong time. I know the Winchesters and when I contacted Dean he sounded like he needed help. I thought Don would be able to provide that. The FBI has declared Don missing but I guarantee you he is safe. Dean and Sam aren't guilty of most of the things that they are accused of. I promise that I will do everything to find Charlie but I thought you deserved to know about Don," Colby finished. The hard part was over, or hopefully it was, depending on how Alan responded.

Alan studied Colby's face. He remembered back to the Dwayne Carter incident and thought about how mad, frustrated, and betrayed Don had felt. His son had ranted for weeks about Colby. Alan was from the sixties and from how he had grown up and what he knew about the young soldier turned agent he couldn't believe that Colby had done what he had on purpose. Now Alan was torn in two. He still believed in Colby, still believed that the man could never betray his teammates. However, now his sons were in danger and half of his anxiety could either go away or stay depending on whether he believed Colby. He decided to believe the man. "Are there any new leads on Charlie?" Alan asked, knowing that the question would tell Colby that he trusted him.

Colby let out a small smile, "No. I should get back to the office, continue to help," Colby hadn't told Alan specifically that letting this out would not be good, particularly for him but from the look on the older man's face he knew that his secret was safe.

"You should. Let me make you some sandwiches, for David and Megan," Alan replied, getting busy before Colby to respond. Ten minutes later and Colby was putting his jacket back on as Alan handed him the sandwiches. Before he gave the food completely over Alan said, "You know Megan and David are family too."

Colby caught Alan's eye and understood what he was trying to get across. "I know, I'll call you as soon as we find out anything new."

**December 7 at 1:30pm**

"Give me your credit card," Don said holding out his hand.

Dean balked at the request. "Why in the hell would I do that?" They had pulled up to a motel where Bobby was going to meet them and Dean had decided it would be less of a risk if Don went in to pay for the room. Don had gotten half his body out of the car before sliding back in and giving his ridiculous request.

"How have you not gotten caught?" Don asked. He saw Dean's mouth start to turn up into a smile and could see those sarcastic words piling up in his mouth. "Don't answer that, I need your credit card because they have put a trace on mine."

A little disappointed that Don had cut him off Dean sighed and reached for his wallet. He picked out a card that he hadn't used yet, he had just gotten this baby two weeks ago, and handed it to Don.

Don took a look at the card, specifically the name. He didn't even say a word, just looked up at Dean who was smiling back at him, did that boy ever not smile.

""My great grandfather, got as a birthday gift," Dean loved messing with Don's head.

Before Don hit something or SOMEONE he got out of the car and went to pay for the room. The girl at the counter was young; probably 16 or 17 and she looked like she would rather be at the dentist. That was good for him; it meant that she was unlikely to pay much attention to who he was. "Hi, can I get a room for tonight, two full size beds please." Without looking up from her magazine the girl stuck out her hand, which Don hesitantly laid the credit card in, swiped it and handed it back with a set of keys she had grabbed from the wall behind her.

"The room number is on the key, enjoy your stay."

"Thank you," Don replied back. Dean certainly sprang for the high life. Don climbed back in the car which was still a little difficult for him; he wasn't used to going so low to get into a vehicle. "Room 16, the girl didn't bother to say where."

Dean snatched his credit card back from Don and backed out of the parking space. He liked this change of attitude in the agent. It seemed like Don had resigned to the fact that he was going to have to put up with him in order to get his brother back. Dean was in charge and Don knew it, life was freaking fantastic.

After a couple minutes of searching the boys finally found the motel room. It certainly wasn't the Ritz Carlton but it would do, there was a place to plug in the laptop and clean, running water. Dean glanced at his watch, it was about 6:25 and they still have two and half hours until Bobby got there. Bobby knew a lot more people than Dean did and was better at getting information. Dean eyed the bathroom and a could suddenly smell a not too pleasant odor coming from his body, he hadn't showered in a while. "I'm going to hit the shower, if you want you can use to Sam's laptop to look stuff up." Dean said to Don. He was positive the agent was on board and wouldn't do anything stupid like call the FBI.

Don noticed the horrific smell as soon as they walked into the room. There had to be years of mildew and mold festering underneath the carpets. The comforters on the beds looked like they hadn't been replaced in about twenty years and there were stains up and the walls. Upon closer inspection there was also a mystery stain on one of the comforters, he moved Dean's bag over to that bed, making sure to cover up the spot. Knowing that he wouldn't be able to find anything useful but wanting to know more about these Winchesters Don rummaged through Dean's bag, trying to find Sam's laptop. There were bound to be some files on here that would give him insight. He certainly wasn't a techie but he knew his way around a computer enough to get some information.

Twenty minutes of searching and nothing but a boat load of shit and more shit. There were thousands of pages saved under favorites, all of them dealing with ghosts and demons and other strange, unreal things. There were a couple of pages of information that were supposed to be classified or not for public view but Sam had them saved. He had also looked through all the files saved on the computer. Most of them were pictures. A few had Dean in them, candid shots that Dean most likely didn't know about but almost all of them were of Sam and friends. 'These must have been when he went to college,' Don murmured to himself. He looked up as Dean came out of the bathroom, hair still wet but from here Don could smell the difference.

"I'm going to go grab a bite to eat, you want anything," and then just for good measure Dean added, "I'm buying." Dean was wiling to take the risk going through a drive through, he was starving.

"Umm, I guess a sandwich, whatever," Don replied, choosing not to take the bait.

"Alright, be back in a few," Dean said and then he was gone.

Don sighed as he closed out of the pictures, he was bored and anxious. He had no idea if Charlie was okay and while he believed that Dean might be able to do better than the FBI on this one he was getting tired of sitting around. All they had was a guy's first name, they had no idea where he was or even who he was. Don didn't want to think about how many Toms were in the country, although he would go after every single one if that is what it took. He was going to get Charlie back and this Nick Colbert guy was going to regret messing with his little brother.

Don doubted the television worked, even if it did he wasn't up to watching anything. He remembered seeing some of things of interest in Dean's duffel bag when he had been searching for the lap top, including something that looked like a journal. He had heard the Impala leave, not that it was hard to miss, and was confident that it would take Dean at least thirty minutes to find somewhere to eat Don got up, rummaged through and found the journal/backpack thing.

Flipping open the book Don first noticed that this couldn't be Dean's, the first date was almost twenty four years ago. The first entry sounded almost normal. 'This must be his father's,' Don thought to himself, recalling that the mom had died in a house fire. John Winchester, he believed that was the dad's name, was obviously torn up. Anyone who read this could tell he loved his wife with all his heart. Don briefly thought of his own mother and father. They may have had their issues but they loved each other.

Don should have stopped there already he was doing what he had been trained not to. Put a human face on the criminal, sympathize with them. But he continued to read on. Each entry became a little crazier. John started off rambling about how Mary had been pinned to the ceiling, her stomach slashed open. Then he met Missouri opened his eyes, a person or the state. Don couldn't tell. Then he got into the really heavy stuff, old newspaper articles, hastily drawn figures and symbols, ideas on how to kill spirits, werewolves, shapeshifters? Amidst all the crazy talk there was another normal entry. Sam had left for college, John felt guilty for arguing with him, yelling at him but he worried for Sam's safety.

Don was so entranced with the journal that he didn't hear the Impala pull up and didn't hear the door open. He didn't look up until he heard Dean's voice.

"What the hell are you doing?"

**Next chapter:**

**Round two: Don or Dean? Place your bets now. **


	11. Chapter 11

**December 7****th**** at 4:10pm**

Colby stepped tentatively off the elevator and back onto his floor. He couldn't help but notice that there was probably half the number of people here now than there was when he had left. 'Probably all sent home to get refreshed,' Colby thought to himself.

Mr. Eppes had taken the news pretty well considering everything, but that was Alan's nature. Not once could Colby ever remember the man raising his voice or getting angry. He knew that when Don had been in fugitive recovery the two of them had gotten into some pretty nasty shouting matches but Colby just couldn't see Mr. Eppes getting that mad. Now his concern was David and Megan. They were like family to him, along with Don and even Charlie; this team that he belonged to now was the closest he had ever been to having a real family. His dad hadn't been around much and his mom's best friend was the bottle. Lucky for him, he was the only child.

But how would Megan and David react when Colby told them that he had handed Don over to their suspect? With his eyes and with the tone in his voice Mr. Eppes had made it pretty clear that he felt David and Megan deserved to be told. Whether Alan would tell them if Colby failed to was something that he couldn't risk. If David and Megan were going to find out then it was best that it came from him. Besides, Don would tell them when he returned, wouldn't he? Colby decided he had to stop worrying about the 'what ifs' and 'maybes', it was time to do this. So he took a deep breath and walked towards David, hoping the sandwiches would help ease the blow. The three of them had only been home once and had been on meager portions of power bars and coffee to get them through this.

Colby walked up to David and started to talk when David shushed him. Following the other agent's eyes Colby saw why. Megan and Hendrickson were in a shouting match. Hendrickson was lead agent on the case now but it looked like Megan wasn't going to put up with his cockiness. Colby wondered how long they had been going at it. Although he couldn't hear them there were lots of hand gestures and arms being flung about. Colby had to admire her, Megan had guts. He certainly wouldn't have wanted to take on the man. About two minutes later Megan stormed out of the war room and marched towards them, she did not look happy. She flopped into her chair and slammed one of the open drawers of her desk closed. Colby looked at David, kind of giving him the, 'I'm-not-going-to-be-the-one-to-speak-first,' look.

David rolled his eyes and turned towards Megan. Colby liked to think he was a big toughie but everyone knew he was terrified of Megan, hell, she could probably kick his ass if she wanted. "Everything alright?" It was a stupid question but he didn't know what else to say.

Megan glared over at David, softening her expression when she realized that he was just trying to show some concern. "Apparently Don used his credentials to get into a local prison and talk with two of the prisoners. We have no idea why. They are the suspects in a murder, nothing at all related to Charlie missing." Nothing about this made sense, why would Don go talk to these guys? And then after he talks to them he disappears. Megan had a feeling that it wasn't just a coincidence. Both David and Colby looked just as confused as she was. "The locals haven't gotten a chance to interrogate them yet, Hendrickson is heading down there to do it himself. I'm going with him, that's what we were fighting about. He wants us off the case. He thinks that we are impeding his investigation with our emotions. Even more so, he's not entirely convinced that we're sharing all our information with him, that we might be holding something back. Since I'm the one that sent him away he thinks we know why Don went to the prison."

"That's crazy, where the hell does he get off accusing of us these things!" David shouted, a little louder than he had meant to.

Megan nodded, looking over at Colby, expecting him to voice his agreement. Instead she was a little alarmed to see a nervous look on his face. When their eyes met he quickly averted his gaze. Megan was just about to say something when Hendrickson called out.

"You coming, Reeves?"

Megan quickly glanced back over at Colby who had already turned his back on her. She got David's gaze and knew that he sensed something was off as well. 'Find out,' she silently communicated with her eyes. Before Hendrickson could leave without her she turned her back on what was left of her team.

**December 7 at 3:45pm**

"What the hell are you doing?" Dean yelled again when Don didn't answer.

Don was speechless for a moment, not because he got caught but because he just didn't know what to say. Part of him was ready to stutter out an excuse so as to avoid a fight. Either of them getting injured right now would hamper the search for Charlie. The other half of him though was tired of that smirk, that never ending smirk, and taking second command. Don had never been good at following orders.

"Either you're telling the truth or your whole family is suffering from the same thing." Don finally said, holding up the journal to emphasize his point, although he doubted he needed to.

"You have no right going through my stuff." Dean replied, taking a step forward, curling his hands into fists.

"Well I didn't think that I would be able obtain a warrant." It felt nice getting to be the sarcastic one and seeing Dean get mad and frustrated.

"Give it back to me." Dean said, choosing not to let Don get the satisfaction that he wanted from the comment. Although he doubted that he'd hidden his rising frustration and anger. He took another step forward and held out his hand.

Don didn't hand it back right away, this was fun, egging Dean on. He found himself smiling, inside though, for the first time since he had gotten that call from Charlie.

"Hand it back now!" Dean roared, reaching for it but Don sidestepped out of his path. Dean recovered before he fell flat on his face. He turned around, fists curled up again and his anger now switching to hatred. He couldn't hold it back anymore punching Don square in the face.

Out of surprise Don dropped the book and grasped his nose. He could feel blood dripping out. He had expected Dean to be angry but this was ridiculous. Still, he was never one to take a punch lying down.

Dean backed up, almost surprised at what he had done. But it was too late to back down now, he saw the look on Don's face. The two men stared at each other for a few seconds and then started to circle one another. Dean made the first move, charging in again but this time low at Don's waist.

Don tried to side step but he wasn't quick enough this time. Dean caught him and they both tumbled to the ground. Don winced when his back connected with the hard ground, the thread bare carpet doing nothing to soften his fall. Before Dean had a chance to pin him though Don brought his knee up and jabbed hard into Dean's groin. It worked; he felt the weight lift off of him as Dean rolled to the side.

Just as he was about to punch Don again Dean felt something hard and sharp jam into a place no person should ever touch except with the utmost care. The pain was intense and he couldn't help but groan and roll off his opponent. He saw Don scramble to get up so ignoring the pain Dean used the bed to push himself into a standing position. They were at a stalemate again. Two hard headed, stubborn men that would do anything to best the other one.

Don wasn't going to wait for Dean to make the first move again. He made to punch Dean where he had kneed him but even in his injured state Dean could move quickly.

Dean jumped out of the way but just barely before taking advantage of the brief time window when Don left his own side unprotected. Dean lashed out with his fist and was satisfied when he felt it connect when flesh.

Don barely had time to react when he saw Dean's fist heading his way. He let out a small grunt when the punch landed home but was able to dodge the second one that flew toward his face. Using his right foot Don swept Dean's feet out from under him.

This time Dean was the one lying on the ground looking up. Before he could bring his hands up to protect his face he felt his nose get smashed. However he was ready for it and grabbed Don's hand, yanking him forward and causing him to crash onto the bed. While Don was struggling to get up Dean managed to once again pull himself off the floor. By the time he got up Don was also standing.

Both men were starting to tire and were breathing hard. However, neither of them wasted time and they both charged, coming together like sumo wrestlers. Don grabbed Dean in a headlock and Dean started elbowing Don in the side. Grunts and pants filled the air and the two of them scuffled around in a circle. They were locked in battle and neither was going to give in. This went on for about thirty seconds. They were so busy making sure the other didn't win that they didn't notice the door open, didn't notice the man enter the motel room. However, it was hard to ignore the gunshot. Within a second both of them had jumped back and raised their guns toward the intruder.

SNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNSNS

Bobby Singer had arrived at the motel and almost immediately had left, thinking it was closed down and Dean had mistakenly given the wrong name. The parking lot had so many weeds that it was well on it's way to becoming a field of daises. The paint on the buildings had all but flaked off. Just as he was turning around to exit the parking lot he saw movement in the office. 'Well, someone's home,' Bobby thought. From where he was at he wasn't able to see the last row of rooms. Bobby decided it wouldn't hurt to check it out. Sure enough the Impala was sitting half way down the last row of rooms.

As he lifted his hand to knock Bobby heard a loud thud followed by a second softer thump. Taking a few steps back and dipping his shoulder Bobby charged at the door, raising his shoulder up just as he rammed the door. And just as he suspected the door popped right open, too old and rotten to put up any resistance.

Bobby had to stop and take a moment to process what was going on. He recognized one of the men in front of him as Dean but didn't know the second guy. The two of them were currently locked together, taking cheap shots and repeatedly pounding on each other. Dean had mentioned he was bringing someone along, Bobby had assumed it would be a friend. After his brain caught up with what he was seeing Bobby decided it was time to end this. He took the gun that he had taken out of his holster when he'd heard the thud, aimed it out the open door and fired, figuring they were too far away for anyone to hear..

Before he knew it there were two guns aimed steadily at his head. Even though the other man looked nothing like Sam Bobby faltered for a second. The two men had just been in the middle of a death match but now their bodies were completely in sync with one another. Bobby had always been amazed at how well Dean and Sam worked together. Watching them was akin to watching a SWAT team that had worked together for ten years. That was the feeling he had right now, seeing Dean and this man standing next to each other.

It took Dean only a couple seconds to realize who it was that he was aiming his gun at. "Jeez Bobby, a little warning would be nice." Dean said, dropping his gun and placing in the back of his waistband.

"You know him?" Don asked, not ready to drop his gun.

Dean looked at Don, just now realizing he had a gun. "Where the hell did you get the gun?" He had taken Don's gun away from him a long time ago. Also, how could he not have noticed it on him when he first walked in. Usually he was good about those things.

It wasn't quite the answer he had wanted but Don figured that if the older man was any threat Dean wouldn't be yelling at him. "It was in your bag, next to the journal." Don said, finally dropping his aim as well, putting the weapon back into the holster that Dean hadn't bothered taking from him. And yes, the mention of the journal was meant to egg Dean on.

"Okay guys come on, what's going on?" Bobby asked quickly when he saw Dean take a step forward toward the other man, fist clenching, body tightening, ready for another fight.

Dean recognized the underlying tone in Bobby's voice and backed off. Dean and him getting into another fight wouldn't be a good idea. "Bobby this is Don Eppes, Don, this is Bobby. He's a family friend." Dean said, making introductions.

Don stepped forward and shook Bobby's hand. The grip was strong and calloused. He could feel the man's eyes scanning him. Bobby was trying to determine whether Don was trustworthy. Don, in turn, was doing the same thing.

Bobby looked over Don carefully, putting together the way the man held himself, held the gun, and how he was dressed. "LAPD or FBI?" Bobby asked, taking a wild guess. Something about Don just screamed law enforcement.

'Who in the hell were these people?' Don thought as he tried to assess the newcomer. Dean might be annoying as hell but he wasn't an idiot. The kid knew how to survive and apparently this Bobby guy was the same way. These "hunters" were a hell of a group, even if they were all deranged. Don couldn't help but think about what great FBI agents they would make, that is, if they didn't have a criminal background or they weren't deranged. "FBI."

Dean anticipated the look that Bobby shot him so before the older man could start yelling at him Dean started to explain. "His brother was kidnapped along with Sam and Seeth." Bobby just gave him a 'who-the-hell-cares' look. "It was a favor to Colby. Don is Colby's boss and the FBI weren't getting anywhere so he figured he would send Don to us."

Don was surprised to see the change in expression on Bobby's face, from anger and confusion to understanding and acceptance of the situation. Dean had done more than just help Colby out, Colby was a friend at least to Dean and Bobby. To Don Colby had always been level headed, never the kind to buy into crap but here he was being told that Colby believed in ghosts and spirits and demons. He would never have imagined Colby buying into this world. There would definitely be questions when he got back, and maybe a psych eval.

"Alright, well have you got any new information?" Bobby asked.

"No, just the name Tom and who was involved." Dean reported. He sat down, slowly, on one of the beds, his right arm curling into his midsection. Now that the adrenaline was wearing off he was starting to feel the punches. To his satisfaction though Don was breathing hard and a small amount of pain could be seen in his face.

Bobby couldn't help but notice that both men seemed to be weakening before his eyes. He shouldn't have been surprised, Dean was a hell of a fighter and from the looks of it Don wasn't that bad either. Both men were sporting bloody noses and various cuts on their faces from knuckles. Bobby guessed there were some pretty black and blue bruises forming elsewhere as well. "Okay, I've called a couple of people but got lots more to go." Bobby heard his stomach growl and looked sorrowfully at the squashed McDonalds bag. "Here, go get us some food." Bobby said, handing Dean his credit card.

"Fine," Dean said and grabbed the credit card. He wanted to start searching but he had no idea where, at least Bobby had some people to call. Besides, Bobby could take care of himself if need be, 'Don fights like a girl' Dean told himself. He didn't bother to take into account the shooting pain in his abdomen when he went to climb into the Impala.

**December 7 at 7:00pm**

David didn't dare make eye contact when Megan slammed a file down on her desk and yanked out her chair to sit in it. He couldn't tell if Megan was angry or frustrated, David was guessing it was a mixture of both. She looked even more tired than when she had left, her pony tail was loose and there were stray hairs coming out every which way. Bags were forming under her eyes and her usually confident demeanor had turned downtrodden.

Megan was ready to collapse, the interview had revealed a lot and had given more of a lead then they could have hoped for but that didn't mean it was easy or pleasant. First she had to fight to get into the room with Hendrickson; he had expected her to sit behind the glass. After a lot of hard balling and promises of deals they had gotten the older of the two to talk. He knew more than the younger one. That's when the headache had started. After the guy had told them what they knew Hendrickson had gotten furious. At first Megan enjoyed seeing the man turned upside down and proven wrong. Then it got old, it ended with Hendrickson arguing with the man, telling the man that he was wrong.

The ride back to the office hadn't been any better. Hendrickson had yelled at her, blaming her and her team for everything. Megan got to learn just how much Hendrickson liked Don. She suspected Don felt the same way. All of the drama had taken a toll on her already tired body and mind. Combine that with the confusion and yes, the frustration that she now felt towards Don and Megan was ready to crumble.

After a few seconds of rest Megan looked up and saw both David and Colby glancing her way, eager for some news. "Don talked with the two guys although he was only able to get information out of one of them. He was told that Dean and Sam aren't behind this, in fact, Nick Colbert's objective was to kidnap the two of them, along with someone named Seeth. Apparently the three of them, Dean, Sam, and this Seeth are Nick's sons. Dean and Sam were adopted as infants by the Winchesters. For Nick this is revenge. Neither of the guys knew who Charlie was, it's likely that Charlie was in the wrong place at the wrong time. The two men were waiting in the house for Dean Winchester. So that means that Nick has Sam, Seeth and Charlie, not Dean. We can bet that Dean is looking for his brothers. Nick had plans to take them to a guy named Tom. That's what Don found out." Megan paused, catching her breath and letting her mind also rest. She was so tired. When David and Colby didn't say anything she continued. "What we found out that he didn't was Tom's last name, Haver. There is no one in the database by that name so it really doesn't mean much. We're pulling licenses from the DMV database but we don't have much hope. So essentially we're back to square one."

"Damn it," David said softly. While Megan may have been slightly angry at Don for going to the precinct without telling them David had remained hopeful. Hopeful that they might get a lead but it looked like that wasn't going to happen.

Colby sighed and looked down at his feet. This was it, he had to tell them. Plus, the sooner he told them the sooner he could call Don and give him the update.

"What is it Colby?" Megan asked. Something was up, Colby wasn't himself. She was becoming convinced that he was hiding something.

Colby looked up and saw that David and Megan were staring at him, both confused. "Let's go to the break room." He had also noticed just how many other unwanted ears were around. Without waiting for a reply he got up and left, trying to exude confidence he didn't have.

Megan and David looked at each other. Neither one of them had any idea as to what was going on. So, without really any other choice they followed Colby into the break room.

"What's going on?" David asked once they all got into the break room.

Colby leaned against one of the counters, placing his hands on either side of him. Here it goes. "I know where Don is."

Megan and David both stared at him incredulously. "What the hell does that mean?" David asked.

"I know Sam and Dean Winchester. I met them about ten years ago through their adoptive father, John Winchester. When everything started happening I called Dean to see if he had any information. I knew that he wasn't a part of it but since Sam's fingerprints were in the cabin I figured he had to know something. That's when I found out Sam and Seeth were kidnapped. I told him about Don and Charlie. Dean has contacts we don't; he's going to be able to find Charlie faster than we can. I figured that Don would be better off with Dean, where they would help each other find Nick and their brothers." Colby took a deep breath before plunging on. "So, I told Dean to get Don."

"You handed over Don to a wanted criminal!" Megan said, much louder than she normally allowed her voice to get. How in the hell could Colby be so stupid? She had been the one that had stuck up for him whenever talk shifted to Dwayne Carter and now he was doing this.

"No, I mean yes. But Dean and Sam aren't guilty of most of things they're accused of."

"Most of things?" This time it was David. He was pacing around the room, trying not to slug Colby right here and now.

"Would you two calm down please, some people are starting to notice." Colby said, seeing some eyes dart their way.

Both Megan and David stopped and did their best to appear relaxed but their faces couldn't hide the anger, confusion, and the thousand other emotions they were feeling.

"Look, they aren't guilty of all but the credit card fraud and some breaking and entering," Colby thought for a second, "okay, and the grave desecration," he had to think again, "and the impersonating a federal officer but that's it. And they did all those things because they had too. They didn't murder or torture anybody. Look I can't explain right now, but the important thing is they aren't bad people."

Megan couldn't believe what she was hearing. She had just spent the past three hours arguing with Hendrickson that she, David, and Colby would not keep information from him. They were just as concerned with finding Don and Charlie as anyone else. Now Colby had made a liar out of her.

"Why in the hell should we believe you? Why shouldn't we just open this door and let them arrest you right now?" David asked. He was fuming. Colby and he were close friends, best friends, or at least they were. While he was closer to Colby than he was to Don, Don was still his boss, teammate, and friend. If Colby had betrayed Don there would be no way he could forgive him.

Megan glanced over at David, a little afraid at what David was displaying. She knew David and Colby were close and with David's personality he would take this to heart. She needed to cool David down; if Hendrickson found out about Colby they would all be taken off the case. So if Colby was indeed telling the truth then she might be willing to turn the other cheek. "So Dean has Don. Is Don okay?"

"Yes, I spoke with Don and told him everything. Right after this I plan to go give them the new information." Colby figured the truth was the easiest way to go right now. David was ready to hang him but Megan looked like she might be willing to give him a chance. "I told you guys this so you wouldn't worry. But I think we should keep everyone else in the dark, it will make the case more urgent."

"To save your own ass." David said under his breath.

"So you can talk to him, to Don?" Megan asked. This would be the perfect way to prove to David, and herself, that Colby was indeed telling the truth. She had to know that Don was safe.

"Yes…"

"Megan."

Megan and David and Colby must have all had that deer in the headlight look because Hendrickson took a step back when they turned towards him. They'd been that involved in the conversation that none of them had noticed the door to the break room open. "What?" Megan asked, not bothering to hide the disgust in her voice.

"We need you guys out here, helping." Hendrickson said, leaving the 'under supervision' part out.

"We're coming." David said.

When Hendrickson didn't immediately leave the three of them filed out. Megan took the opportunity while Hendrickson's back was turned to whisper "Have him call us" to Colby.

Colby nodded slightly to let her know that he understood. He knew that he was walking on thin ice. After about twenty minutes of working at his desk Colby figured he could safely sneak out for a few minutes. When Hendrickson disappeared into the bathroom Colby headed downstairs and outside.

**December 7 at 7:45pm**

Don grimaced as he pulled his shirt back down. He had just gotten done taking a shower. Bobby had long since exhausted his contact list and now they were waiting to hear back from someone. He was dying to call Colby and see if they had found out anything knew but that would require asking Dean for his cell phone. He couldn't use Bobby's; they had to keep the line clear. And he sure as hell wasn't going to ask Dean for anything. The pain they were both in from their fight had subsided for the most part but he was still furious with Dean and he knew Dean felt the same way.

When Dean had come back with the food Don had been eager to chow down but once the food was in front of him all he could think about was the pain in his jaw and abdomen. His expression of hunger turned to one of nervousness; he looked up to see the same look on Dean's face. Neither man was prepared to show weakness in front of the other. When their eyes met they both glared at each other. Dean bit off about half of his burger while Don took a smaller bite. It took about three minutes for both of them to finish the one bite. The pain in his jaw from chewing and his stomach was so great that he was almost brought to tears and he had to excuse himself to the bathroom. When he came back out Dean's sandwich was gone but Don spied it in the trash. He inconspicuously laid his to the side.

The shower had done a lot to loosen up his stiffening joints. His midsection was a brilliant shade of black, blue, and purple. He would definitely be sore for a couple days but overall he didn't think there was any real damage. As he stepped out of the bathroom Dean's cell phone rang. He tried not to get his hopes up too high but couldn't help but stand by eagerly and wait for any news.

"Hey, Colby." Dean asked, trying to not to appear too desperate when in truth he was dying inside for some information. Not being able to do anything to help his brothers was killing him. He had never been this helpless before, he had always been by Sam's side and more recently by Seeth's side.

"What was that again? Alright I got it written down. Thanks a lot." Dean had written down something on a napkin and handed it to Bobby who immediately got on his cell phone.

Don saw the writing briefly, it looked like Tom's last name.

"Okay, thanks again, here he is. Here, Colby wants to talk to you." Dean said, practically throwing his cell phone at Don while he went over to Bobby who was talking on his own cell phone and typing in information on his laptop.

Don was a little surprised but took the phone. "You found out his last name."

"_Yes, Megan and Hendrickson got it out of one of the guys you interviewed. You didn't tell me about them."_

"I forgot, I'm sorry." Don didn't know what he was apologizing for, he was just happy that they finally got a break.

"_Look he's not in any system, we've searched. Also, I told your dad, Megan, and David what is going on. I didn't want them to worry."_

Don was definitely taken aback by that. Colby was putting himself on the line by doing that. After this was over it was definitely going to take a lot thinking to figure this Colby thing out. But he had to be grateful for what the man had done. He had been so preoccupied with everything that he had forgotten to call his dad. Surely by now they would have told him that he was missing. His father would be a wreck. At least Colby had thought to give him a little reassurance, more than he had done. "Thanks, I mean it." Don said, and he truly did mean it.

"_I was wondering if you could call Megan and David, let them know you're okay. They don't trust me completely. Not that I can blame them. You should call your dad as well. Let him know you really are okay. He believed me a little more but I'm sure he wouldn't mind talking to you. I got to go but let me know if you find anything."_

"Bye Colby."

"_Bye Don." _

"I have a location. Tom Haver is in Brent, Georgia. One of my contacts used to be friends with Nick, back in his early days. He took Nick to a Tom Haver's once. He doesn't remember the exact address but the town was really small, or at least it was back then. With any luck Tom still lives there and someone will be able to point us in the right direction." Bobby said, jotting down the Mapquest directions to Brent Georgia, it would take a day and half, hopefully less with their driving.

"Let's go." Dean said, shoving things into his bag and heading out the door before Don or Bobby had a chance to blink. He had a lead, he had a direction and he had a purpose. He was hunting now, hunting for his little brothers and nothing else mattered right now, nothing else existed.

**December 8 at 11:00pm**

Night had come again which meant the cold was back. Sam was almost sure they were somewhere south though, while it was cold it was probably still in the fifties. That didn't matter though, it was still cold enough to do harm to Seeth, who had finally fallen asleep. Seeth was shivering again, less than before though. His body was starting to shut down, the energy to fight off the infections and keep warm was waning.

Sam had only been able to grab about two hours of sleep, by accident. He had been trying so hard to stay awake and had finally drifted off to sleep. When they hit a big dip in the road he was bumped awake.

Charlie had been able to grab a bit more sleep than Sam but not much. He was getting tired but they were getting close to their destination. He could feel it, they had been in the back of the van for a while. Taking into account the length of the United States and subtracting what he thought was an appropriate distance, taking into account their supposed speed and travel distance he figured it would take them a day and a half to two days for them to get to Georgia. He knew they had been in the van for about a day and a half.

Sam leaned back, resting on his head on the side of the U-Haul van. He had just checked Seeth's pulse, slow, and his skin was hot to the touch. They needed to get him to a doctor's now. The gun shot wound on his leg was getting infected and the bruising was getting worse on his side. Sam was starting to suspect internal bleeding.

"How is he?" Charlie asked. He hadn't been able to take his eyes off of Seeth since he had first woken up. While he helped Don at least once a week he was kept away from the victims. The one time at the bank when a FBI agent had been killed was enough for him. The pictures were easier to look at; it was easier to distance himself.

"Getting worse, he needs a doctor." Sam said sullenly.

"Is there…" Charlie was cut off when the U-Haul slowed down and stopped completely. The doors up front opened and slammed shut. His breathing quickened and his eyes widened in fear. Now was the moment of truth. Charlie had been waiting for it but now that it was here he wanted it to go away.

Sam instinctively moved in front of Seeth, blocking him from the door. He wasn't surprised when the door slide up and Nick's face appeared. The two of them stared at each other for a while, reading one another. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Charlie scoot a little back. "Seeth needs a doctor, now." Sam said. As much as he would love to get into it with Nick right now Seeth was the priority and if that meant he had to play nice then so be it.

"Get out." Nick said.

Sam hesitated for a moment, if he got out then he couldn't protect Seeth. Of course with his hands cuffed he really couldn't do that anyway. So he slowly scooted himself towards the door. He stopped when he got to the edge, his legs were dangling over the side and the drop looked a fair way down. The problem was solved for him though. Before he could back away Nick grabbed his left leg and pulled him down. Blackness swarmed in front of him when his head grazed the side of van. His ass hit the ground and it immediately felt like he had been riding a horse for a straight week. He was going to be bruised tomorrow. But the pain in his butt was nothing compared to his back and head. The ground was thankfully softer than that in L.A., not as hard but it still was ground. "Uh."

"Get the other two out." Nick said to two men who were standing off to the other side.

"Seeth needs a doctor." Sam managed to cough out.

"I'd be more concerned about myself if I were you." Nick said. He glanced up and saw the two men attempting to lift Seeth out, he held up his hand. Grabbing Seeth's leg he pulled, bringing his youngest son to the ground just like Sam.

"Seeth!" Sam yelled. He went to get up and move over to his brother but a sharp shooting pain went in shockwaves down his back. He laid back down. "Ahhhh. Why did you do that? I told you he needed a doctor." Sam bit back a cry as another pain ran down his back.

"I told you, worry about yourself." Nick said.

Sam glanced over at Seeth. Thankfully he was still unconscious. However, that just meant that Seeth was really badly off. Although he thought it would be impossible, Seeth now looked even paler. "He needs help."

Charlie winced at the two men's strong grip as they dragged him from the van. Although he was glad he was faring better than Seeth, that ground didn't look too inviting. He saw Sam and for a moment he swore he could see tears in the guy's eyes. He looked over at Nick and saw nothing but hatred.

"Hey, Tom." Nick greeted, shaking hands with his old friend.

Sam glanced towards Nick and saw Tom. He was an older man, early fifties most likely, but definitely in good shape. His hair was thinning and what was left was dark gray. For some reason Sam noticed the guy's fingertips. Smokers had that tinge of yellow to their fingers, but there appeared to be a tinge of red to Tom's.

"These two are for you. I need Mary to look at him." Nick said, pointing to Seeth.

"They're young, they're in good shape, I'll give you ten thousand for each of them."

"Fifteen."

"Twelve."

"Deal."

Sam and Charlie exchanged looks, had they just been sold.

**Thanks everyone for reading. I promise there will be more Charlie and Sam in the next chapter. I had to catch everyone up so they were all on the same day. Hope you enjoyed and don't forget to review.**

**Once again thanks to my beta ALEO, she is awesome.**


	12. Chapter 12

**December 9****th**** at 11:30pm**

Hell. That was the only word that Charlie could use to describe the place that he was in. Tom and a couple men had brought Sam and him into the basement of a nearby house. After locking each of them into separate tiny jail cells the men left, leaving them in this hell. The fluorescent light that was hanging from the ceiling emitted very little light, making it almost impossible to see more than five feet in front of him, something for which Charlie decided he was thankful. He didn't need to see to know that this room wasn't going to appear on Martha Stewart any time soon. The smell of urine saturated the air so much so that it stung his eyes. And there was something else Charlie could not only smell, but feel. It was hard to put into words. Maybe it was fear, maybe death. Charlie didn't want to dwell on it.

The floor down here was dirt and Charlie could see other things littering the ground, once again he didn't want to think about what those objects could be. From what he could see there were three rows of cages, basically small jail cells with five cages in each row. Fifteen total. Yes, he was a genius mathematician. Charlie didn't know if the fact that there was no one else down here was a good thing or a bad thing. He looked over at Sam who was pacing in his cell.

"Sam, what…what happened?" Charlie's brain just couldn't process what had happened a few minutes ago. Although he was usually pretty good at remembering things he just couldn't believe that the conversation he had heard actually happened.

Sam's back was killing him, pain was still radiating down his spine but he was too preoccupied with thoughts on what was happening to Seeth right now to care. Even the horrific smell and sights of their current place hadn't alarmed him like it had Charlie. Right now he couldn't see what was in front of him, he could only hear Seeth talking, laughing, screaming, and could only feel the terror of what Seeth might be or was soon going to go through. So it wasn't until the second time that Charlie said his name that he actually heard him, heard the desperation in the man's voice making him sound like a scared five year old child. He stopped his pacing and finally looked at Charlie, along with their surroundings. As it turned out he couldn't see how their situation was any better than Seeth's.

"I think we were sold. Seeth was right." Sam said. How could this happen? Like Charlie had asked, how could they get away with this in the twenty-first century?

Charlie looked around, it did seem like Seeth was right. But he couldn't be, absolutely not. This was the kind of thing in movies, maybe in a different country but not here in the United States. His thoughts were interrupted when he heard the metal door off to his right opening. Light from outside the door showed a man walking in, carrying something in each hand. It was food. Charlie backed away from the door but he noticed that Sam stood still, watching the man like a hawk. Was everyone braver than him?

Even though Sam and Don looked nothing a like and Charlie knew Don would resent being compared to a criminal, Charlie was constantly reminded of his big brother when he looked at Sam. Sam wasn't going to back down from anyone and his main concerned seemed to be his brother. Just like Don. Charlie knew Don was looking for him, he knew that his brother wouldn't stop until he was found. But how could Don track him all the way to Georgia. Don had been in fugitive recovery and was one of the best but Charlie didn't see a way. 'I guess that's why he's the FBI agent,' Charlie thought to himself.

"Where's my brother?" This wasn't a pleading tone, rather it was authoritative. He had tried the begging before, now it was time to try something new. But the man didn't respond didn't even look at them. He knelt down in front of Charlie's cage first, pushing the food through a small opening on the floor, Sam hadn't noticed it before. It was too small to fit even a child through. Next the man pushed a tray of food into his cell. Sam thought briefly about charging forward but knew he could never reach the man in time to grab him before he got out of reach. Besides, the man's gun was on his left side, Sam wouldn't be able to reach it and the man could easily shoot him one handed at such a close range. So instead he decided to yell one last time before the man disappeared and the metal door clanged shut. "Where the hell is my brother?!"

The food looked about as appetizing as the setting looked romantic. But if they were going to get out of here they needed their strength. As if on cue Sam's stomach growled. If he had kept track of the time right they hadn't eaten in three days. A couple bottles of water had been thrown in the back of the U-Haul van but that was it. Sam picked up the water bottle first, at least it was sealed, and took a small drink. Next came the food, he didn't know when they were going to get fed again. It certainly wouldn't past a health inspection but Sam had tasted worse. He couldn't help but notice Charlie staring at him.

"You need to keep up your strength, especially if we have any hope of escaping." Sam said matter-of-factly. The face Charlie was making was slightly amusing. Sam even would have laughed if the situation was different. "Tom just bought us for twelve grand, he wouldn't poison us. He needs us to keep up our strength so we can work. We're no good to him dying or dead."

Charlie was astonished that Sam was actually eating the stuff. But what he said made sense. Why wasn't Charlie thinking of these things? It didn't take a genius to understand Tom wouldn't want to harm his new 'merchandise'. This was one of the things that Charlie hated about himself, he couldn't perform under pressure and he was put under pressure far too easily. He could take the easy road out and blame his parents, even Don, but he was a grown man and he had chosen to shield himself from the bad things in life. True, he helped with the FBI but he always hid behind his numbers. He never allowed himself to get close to the victims or think of them in any terms other than as numbers and equations. _The laceration on the man's neck was four inches long… the building the man was pushed from was twenty stories high… the wind speed was 5 knots, affecting the bullet this way… _They were always numbers, numbers and equations. But now he was one of those numbers, a part of one of those equations. And he couldn't see through the jumbled mess of writing on the chalkboard.

However Sam could see it, he knew what to do. So Charlie reluctantly followed his lead and picked up the stale piece of bread.

**December 10****th**** at 5:00am**

Don slid underneath the covers of the bed. The hotel certainly wasn't a five star but it was the Ritz Carlton compared to the previous one. Dean had driven straight through for the day and a half it had taken to drive to Brent, Georgia. Well, to just outside the town limits, they had found out there were no motels in the sleepy town through some online research. Dean needed a chance to rest before they went in, although Dean didn't want to admit it. Don had volunteered to drive, let him get a chance to rest but Dean had scoffed at the offer and muttered something along the lines of "No FBI agent will ever touch this wheel." Bobby didn't ask, Don could see he wanted to but Don thought he might be too afraid to suggest it. Virtually the whole way Bobby had kept a tight grip on the door handle and a semi-terrified look on his face. Don had been a little less unnerved at Dean's driving, he was used to going to eighty miles a hour swerving in and out of traffic.

None of them had gotten any sleep during the drive, Bobby was too scared and Don was ready to jump out of the car and run to Georgia. He was convinced that he could have run faster, even at eighty miles per hour it felt like they were going too slow. It was at Bobby's suggestion that they stop. Dean had yelled, cursed, stomped his feet and slammed doors all the way from the car to the room. Don agreed with Dean's temper tantrum, they should be going _now_. Every second they waited was a second more that his brother was in danger. Don didn't need his famous mathematician brother to tell him that the chances of getting him back alive decreased with each hour.

To help distract himself from thoughts of his brother's impending death he had called his dad and Megan. His dad had been relieved beyond words to hear his voice. Don had assured him that he was okay and he was going to find Charlie. When they hung up he knew his dad was still on the edge of losing it but Don felt good that he could at least provide his father some comfort. Megan had been just as happy to hear from him and he could hear David's sigh of relief in the background. Megan had insisted that he tell her where they were but Bobby's gun kept him silent. When he had asked to call his father and Megan Dean had let him borrow his cell phone on one condition, he didn't tell them where they were headed. Don had tried to explain that his team could help them. Dean had been adamant and refused to let Don tell them where they were going. Hence the threat of Bobby's gun, Dean still didn't trust him to do the right thing when it came to this. Don figured that he could always steal the cell phone later and call them back if he thought they were going to need the help. He had thought about calling them in the hotel while Don was gone but at that point he was still trying to give Dean the benefit of the doubt. Now that he had a location he knew the best way to handle this would be to get the FBI involved.

As far as the argument over whether to stop or not went, Bobby had won out, using logic, the "I'm older card" and pure stubbornness. It was 5:00 in the morning after all; they would be far too conspicuous looking for Tom at this time in the day. Besides, there wouldn't even be anyone around to ask about Tom. They would wait until eleven when the stores would be open and more people would be around. And then there was the fact that they needed rest. That argument hadn't gone over as well. Dean insisted that he didn't need to rest, as he yawned. Don agreed with Dean though kept his argument to a minimum. Dean had done a good enough job for the both of them.

Fifteen minutes later and here they were, trying to get some sleep. Bobby seemed to be the only one who was succeeding. He had tried unsuccessfully to try and get some shut eye. He knew that he needed it. But no matter what he tried he couldn't get Charlie's image out of his head. His mind kept flashing on the different scenarios his brother could be going through, none of them good. From his spot he could hear Dean on the floor turning restlessly from side to side. That was perhaps the only good thing to come out of stopping at the motel. Bobby didn't trust them to not take off and find Sam and Charlie without him so they had only gotten one room. Consequently there were only two beds. Don and Dean had been respectful and let Bobby have a bed, they flipped for the second one. Don had won.

**December 10****th**** at 11:00am**

Sam bent at his waist, stretching his arms out. His body was stiff and his legs felt like lead. He had stood up all night long. The food had been hard to swallow but there was no way that he was going to sit down on the ground. Sam was now glad he hadn't. There was light showing through a tiny window on the other side of the room and he was starting to think he preferred the darkness. It was still shady in some spots but the majority of the room was pretty well lit now. The concrete walls had dark stains on them. Sam stepped forward as something caught his eye. On one of the bars of his cage there were a few strands of human hair along with a piece of skin. Sam glanced over at Charlie but the other man was too busy trying to stay awake to notice.

Charlie didn't deserve any of this. Neither did he or Seeth, but it was _their_ problem. Charlie was innocent, he had just been in the wrong place at the wrong time. The mathematician was holding up better than most other people would have in his position. Sam had to give him that. According to Seeth though this was just the beginning, things were going to get much worse. They had indeed been sold to Tom but Sam had a sinking feeling that Tom wasn't going to be their 'owner' for long. With the number of cages down here and the lack of people Sam was thinking that Tom had to be a broker of some sort.

"Hey Sam?"

"Yeah?" Sam glanced over at Charlie who was still leaning against the wall with his eyes closed.

"Does Dean know about this place?" He was so tired. His eyelids were heavy and his legs were jelly. He didn't know how much longer he could remain standing. If he sat down though Charlie was sure he would lose his lunch. And he had to pee. He had only used the restroom once since all this happened. On the way to the U-haul van they had allowed them to pee in the bathroom. But now he really had to go. He had an idea as to where he was supposed to go and where most people had gone before him but he couldn't do it. The smell was already so bad.

"No." Sam said dejectedly, he had a feeling where this was going.

"You said Tom was a hunter, are these people hunters?"

"I don't know, probably not."

"So other hunters aren't going to know about them?"

"No."

"Okay."

Sam sighed. Charlie was right, they were screwed. Dean had found him before when some crazy hick family had taken him. Dean had gotten him out of tight spots but this time they were half way across the country with no information. No way to find them. It was up to them if they wanted to escape and Sam saw no way of that happening, at least right now anyway. Maybe an opportunity would open up later but for now Sam saw no way out. And even if he did there was no way he could leave Seeth behind. Seeth had spent his entire life in Nick's hands, being abused everyday. Sam couldn't let that happen again. Seeth had just started to come out of his shell, had just started to be the person he could be. Sam had to make sure Seeth got that chance.

Charlie almost felt bad for bringing up the questions he had just asked. It was like they had drained Sam of any hope he had left. The younger man's shoulders were now slumped forward and he was leaning heavily against the wall. 'Younger man,' Charlie thought to himself. Sam was younger than him by a considerable amount and yet he was the one taking the lead. Charlie was the one who felt like a confused child. Then again, Charlie was so far removed from his comfort zone, never could he have imagined this world existed. Sam, though, seemed to understand, or at least know how to handle this. Usually when things became scary he looked to Don, Don was his light. Without him here he didn't know what to do, he wasn't use to taking the reins, so Sam was the next best thing.

"Good morning gentlemen."

Charlie and Sam both stood up straight and walked towards the center of their cages. Tom was walking in with two men behind him. Neither of them said a word.

"Here they are. This one is in his mid-thirties, in pretty good shape, easily handled. This one," Tom pointed toward Sam, "is twenty four, in excellent shape and might be a little challenge but I know you like that Paul." Tom was no longer looking at Sam or Charlie but talking to the two men that walked in with him. One of them, supposedly called Paul, gave a little smile at the last statement.

"Where is my brother?" Sam said, not as authoritative as the last time he asked but not quite begging yet.

"The first one is twenty thousand and the second one is twenty three thousand." Tom said, not bothering to turn around and acknowledge Sam. "If you wait until spring they'll both be in the thirties. I know you lost two of your best workers this past month. Supposedly you got a little carried away, eh Paul?" Paul chuckled at that and the other man let out a small smile but you could tell he was bitter.

Charlie couldn't believe it, they were being sold again. Tom was a broker. He was talking about them like they were dogs. They were no more than animals to him. Charlie looked over at Sam but he was just standing there. Charlie could see the frustration building in Sam and felt for him. He couldn't imagine being in his position.

Sam could hear what they were saying. He could hear Tom selling them and degrading them as if they were pieces of meat but he didn't care. He was tired of being ignored; he wanted to know where Seeth was. He wanted to see his brother. He wanted to let Seeth know that he hadn't abandoned him; he wouldn't abandon him, no matter what.

"Are you ready for another one Paul?" The bitter man asked. He was studying the two in the cages. Tom was right about the first one, he would be easy to break, throw a few punches and he would be ready to go. But there was something about the second one, there was something in his eyes that made him leery of him. He was acting weak and desperate right now but he had a feeling it wasn't going to last. "You've still got the other one you're working on right now."

"That one is almost broken, I can take on another. I got enough time before the farming season starts." Paul said, stepping closer to the second one's cage. The man held his ground and maintained eye contact. Oh yeah, he would be fun to break.

Sam started to pay more attention to what they were saying. They were talking about him. Apparently he needed to be broken in and that wasn't going to happen. When the man named Paul stepped forward Sam squared his shoulders and looked him directly in the eyes. No one was going to intimidate him.

"Alright, I'll take both. Paul, go get the chains from the truck." The bitter one said as he pulled out a wad of bills.

Charlie didn't want to know where that money came from, all he knew was that if the conversation was any indicator they were in trouble. He looked over at Sam again but he was just standing stock still, staring off into space. He looked back towards the door when he heard Paul walk through. There were chains and leather items, they were all jumbled in his arms and Charlie couldn't tell what was what. He swallowed hard and stepped back a little. This was really happening, how could this be happening? His cage was opened first. Paul stepped toward him, holding what looked like a leather dog collar and a chain leash. Charlie felt his back press against the wall.

"Stand still." Paul said, reaching out.

Charlie saw the man's hand reaching towards his neck and started to hyperventilate. He flinched when he felt the smooth old leather touch his neck. When he heard a lock he started to panic. He ducked down and tried to run away but felt a harsh tug on the collar around his neck. Next thing he knew he was on his back. The ground was soft and gave way so his landing was cushioned. He could smell the urine even stronger now that he was down on the ground. His fingers were lying in mud, maybe something else. The ceiling was wooden and rotting. He had tunnel vision; all he could see was what was in front of him. There was a whooshing noise in his ears and he could hear nothing but his brain going into overdrive, what was happening to him?

"I said to stand still." Paul said.

"Stop it, leave him alone!" Sam said. He had rushed over to the side where his cage met Charlie's. Sam could see he was having a panic attack. He watched Paul put the collar around Charlie's neck, saw Charlie start to pull away before Paul yanked on the lead causing Charlie to fall. Paul then hauled Charlie to his feet. The other man took Charlie upstairs, dragging him by a chain that was attached to the collar. They were treating him like a dog, this wasn't going to go well. Then Paul was coming for him.

Instead of backing up Sam stepped forward. He stood up tall, stuck his chest out and dared Paul to touch him. Paul stepped into his cage. Until then Sam hadn't noticed how tall the man was. Paul was almost as tall as him, maybe an inch shorter. For about twenty seconds they stared at each other, waiting to see who would make the first move.

"Put it on." Paul said, throwing the collar at Sam without breaking eye contact.

Sam saw Paul throw the collar and felt it hit him then fall to the ground. He didn't bother to look but instead kept looking at Paul. "No."

Paul nodded slowly.

Sam was so focused on not losing the staring contest that he didn't see Paul pull it out of his belt. But he felt it on his ankle and couldn't help the gasp that escaped him nor falling down on one knee. The sharp stinging sensation was instant and he could see blood soaking through his jeans. He grabbed his ankle and looked back at Paul. There was a whip in his hand. Sam had to look again, a whip? He went to get up but dropped before he could get half way up. The shoulder on the same side of the hurt ankle was now throbbing. Paul had whipped him again. Out of the corner of his eye he could see blood spreading on his T-shirt. He glanced back over at Paul. He wasn't going to let this man win. He couldn't.

Paul dropped his whip outside the cage and walked toward Sam, picking up the collar on his way. He got out his cuffs, he needed to show this animal who was boss but he wasn't an idiot. The only way he was going to get the collar on was to incapacitate him.

Sam stayed down on his knee while Paul walked toward him. He waited until Paul was directly behind him before he made his move. Moving quickly Sam kicked out his uninjured leg and made a wide sweep, his goal to kick out Paul's legs. He didn't feel any contact but leapt to his feet anyway. He spun around but before he could block or counter he received a punch to his face. Sam stumbled back but didn't fall; he wasn't going to fall again. He saw Paul step forward again and then he felt a fist connect with his stomach. 'This guy is too fast,' Sam thought to himself. A leg hooked around his knee and he was down. His head collided with the bars of the cage. He tried to get up but before he could Paul flipped him over onto his stomach and grabbed his arms. He struggled but a sharp knee dug in aggravating his already injured back. He felt his hands being cuffed and then something was wrapped around his neck, the collar.

"I ask once and only once."

**December 10****th**** at 11:45am**

Dean, Don, and Bobby stepped out of the Impala. Bobby had certainly gotten the most sleep out of the three of them but Dean and Don had each managed to get about an hour of shut-eye. Dean had been the first one up and when he had come out of the bathroom Don and Bobby were also awake.

Brent, Georgia looked like any other town that Dean had ever visited with Sam and Seeth. It was small, rural and stunk of cows. After driving past a couple farms where some people were working they reached the center of town. There were a couple of people milling about but not much happening. He stepped into the general store with Don and Bobby following closely behind. With the exception of the cashier, there was no one else in the store. Dean stepped forward and pulled out his wallet.

"Hi, I'm Special Agent Granger, these are my partners Agent Eppes, and Agent Sinclair." Dean said, showing his badge. He gave into the temptation and looked behind him to see Don's reaction. There was the briefest look of 'I'm ready to punch you' on Don's face but he recovered quickly and gave the lady a slight smile and nod, Bobby did the same. Dean smiled to himself, Colby had mentioned Agent David Sinclair before and Dean figured the name would suit Bobby fine. Plus he could get back at Don for winning the coin toss.

"We're looking for a Tom Haver, we have some questions for him. I was wondering if you could point us in the right direction." Dean said, doing his best to charm the cashier, although he didn't know how well it was working. The woman was no spring chicken and looked like she was more accustomed to working out in the field than in the store. Her hair was graying and loose ends flew out of her pony tail every which way. As she was about to respond the little bell on the door chimed. Dean turned around and glanced at the customer, a tallish man about Bobby's age. He'd already turned back around to the cashier to get her response before the man's face sunk in; by that time it was too late.

"You do it and I'll shoot him!"

**Hope you guys enjoyed the chapter. Thank you so much for all the reviews, keep them coming, I love to hear what you are thinking. I can't improve if you don't let me know what I'm doing wrong.**

**Also a big thanks to ALEO, my beta. She really helped me out with this chapter. **


	13. Chapter 13

**December 9****th**** at 11:45am**

Don had been standing by the door when the three men had walked in. He had been idly looking at some of the candy while Dean tried to weasel some information out of the cashier. 'When was the last time he had eaten a candy bar?' Don thought to himself. It had been awhile, he knew that. He had just been about to pick up the Snickers bar when he felt an arm snake around his throat and pull him back. Before he could react a gun was shoved into his temple.

"You do it and I'll shoot him!"

Don was facing Dean who had his gun pointed straight at his head. Bobby had also yanked out his gun and was aiming it at one of the other men. For some reason Don didn't feel confident that Dean would listen to the threat.

Dean had caught a glimpse of the man coming in but hadn't been too worried about who it was until his brain registered what was going on. When he whirled around with his gun pointed straight at Nick's head he found himself looking at Don. Nick was using him as a human shield. Dean saw Don wince when a gun was jabbed into his temple. He looked over at Bobby who had his gun out and was pointing it at one of the other men; Dean caught his eye and could tell that the older man was giving him the reins.

"Shoot him, I don't care, he's not with me." Dean said. The chance that Nick was going to actually buy it was slim to none. He had to try though.

"Did they come in together?" Nick asked, directing his question at the woman behind Dean.

Dean turned around to see the woman nod, she looked entirely too comfortable for having five guns being waved around in her store. "They're looking for Tom, said they were FBI agents." The woman said.

"It's not good to lie Dean. People get hurt that way." Nick said.

"Where the hell are my brothers? I swear if you've hurt them I will kill you." Dean said.

"Put your guns down and we'll go see them." Nick said. "That means you too Bobby. Nice to see you again."

Bobby didn't say anything but kept his gun straight and his eyes on the two men. He was here for Dean and while this situation most likely wasn't going to end well he would follow Dean's lead, no matter where that took them. The Winchester boys were like his sons, he would die for them.

"Put the guns down or he will die, Dean. He's of no use to me and you know I won't hesitate."

Dean stared at Nick, it was all he could do not to charge at the man and kill him with his bare hands. There was little chance that Seeth and Sam were unharmed. His main worry was Seeth. Nick didn't know Seeth couldn't heal himself any longer and had probably taken no time in roughing his youngest brother up. How rough is what mattered.

"No. I told you, I don't care." Dean insisted.

This was getting old. Nick didn't want to shoot his hostage. It wasn't that he cared about the man, he cared about the twelve thousand dollars he could get. Dean showing up was an unexpected but welcome surprise. Bobby and this guy showing up was an added bonus. He was expecting to be able to get thirty thousand for Dean and Sam. When Nick only paid him twelve it was disappointing but he was willing to accept it because he knew he could get Dean eventually. He knew he could count on Dean to search for Sam and Seeth until he found them. Now he was going to be able to make at least fifty thousand. However, he didn't know if he could get twelve for Bobby. The man was getting up there in his years. If he shot his hostage then he wouldn't get paid for him and the total he could make would be much, much less. He had to try something else.

"Bullshit Dean. If you don't put that gun down I will kill him and then take out my frustration on Seeth. If you do put the gun down though I might be willing to actually let Seeth recover from round one before wailing on him again." Nick knew that using Seeth was going to work.

Dean shifted to his other foot and flexed his hand around the gun. It was too tempting, way too tempting. His mind was going into overdrive at the moment. If he gave up there would be no way to help Sam and Seeth but at least he would be with them. Together they might be able to come up with a plan. Nick was acquiring too many people, there would six of them. They would be able to get away easily working together. So Dean slowly lowered his gun onto the counter behind him and out of the corner of his eye he saw Bobby do the same. It didn't surprise him when he heard his gun being picked up, cocked, and pointed at him. This whole town was crazy.

"Al, grab some rope from over there and tie their hands behind their back." Nick said, still holding the gun to his hostage's temple.

**December 9****th**** at 12:00pm**

Charlie looked at Sam. He could see some blood on the other man's shoulder and ankle. Charlie had asked if Sam was okay and he said he was. That was about the extent of their conversation, the car ride was silent. They both knew they were screwed. His body automatically tensed when he felt the van come to a stop. Sam didn't move, he just looked down to the floor. Charlie had a feeling the sudden depression was more from the result of knowing they were being taken away from Seeth rather than from his compliance or the injuries.

"You, out first."

Charlie saw Paul pointing at him but didn't register it at first. He didn't want to be separated from Sam; he didn't want to be alone. He wouldn't know what to do.

"Don't make me tell you again."

Charlie looked to Sam who gave him a slight nod. Hesitantly Charlie climbed out of the van; it took him a while considering his hands were still cuffed behind him. He felt a little better when his feet where on solid ground, at least he hadn't fallen.

Charlie flinched when Paul grabbed his cuffed hands but was thankful that he didn't put the chain leash back on the collar. There was an old, large barn about twenty feet away and that's where they were headed. Paul briefly let go of his hands to open the door but quickly grabbed them again and shoved him through. Inside the barn looked like any other. Not that Charlie had been in too many barns but he could make an educated guess. There was tractor, some farming equipment and a couple of horse stalls. Paul led him over to one of the stalls and released his hands yet again. This time Paul shoved aside a very large tack box. Charlie wanted to be surprised when he saw a metal trap door in the floor but for some reason couldn't bring himself to be shocked. After becoming a slave Charlie didn't think much else would. Paul inserted a key into a large padlock and lifted the door.

"No one come out!" Paul shouted and then to Charlie he said, "Come here."

Charlie stepped forward, not wanting to get in trouble and was relieved when Paul took his cuffs off. But who had he just been talking to?

"Your number is 241. Remember it. Now get down there."

There were steps leading down to a lighted room. Someone else was down there, more slaves? Charlie tried to reassure himself that at least it wasn't dark and there wasn't a putrid stench coming out of the basement. He slowly walked down the stairs. Only when he reached the bottom did he dare take a look around. There were faces staring back at him, lots of faces. Without counting Charlie had to guess there were at least forty other people down here. They were all looking at him, not moving or talking, even amongst themselves, just staring back at him. Vaguely Charlie heard the metal door slam down.

That's when the people started moving. Charlie stayed where he was at and scanned the rest of the room. It was large, about 3,000 square feet. Cot like beds lined the whole perimeter of the room. There were about ten doors spread throughout the basement. A couple of tables and a few chairs were in the middle of the room. Other than that the room was plain, concrete walls, concrete flooring.

Most of the people had gone to the cots, a few were sitting at the table talking in low voices and Charlie noticed two people playing with an old chessboard. One girl came towards him.

"Hi."

Charlie looked her up and down. The girl was about his age, maybe in her late twenties. She had dirty blonde hair and green eyes that had been dulled by the life she lived. She wore an old pair of sweat pants and a plain hoodie. Both were holey and had been washed a few too many times. Charlie could tell she was trying to be friendly and there was a small smile on her lips but there was fear in her eyes, she looked defeated, her shoulders were slumped and even under the baggie clothes Charlie could tell she was too skinny. She wasn't overly filthy but probably hadn't had a bath in a couple days. Bathed and fed she would have been beautiful.

"Hi." Charlie finally managed to croak out, after his evaluation of the girl he had gone back to looking around the room. He tried to look at her but his eyes kept darting around.

"My name's Tina." Tina said to him. The man in front of her was nervous and scared. Who could blame him? Still, he was handling it a lot better than most people did when they first came down here. "Come on over this way, the cot next to mine is empty, you can have that one."

Charlie hesitated before he stepped down the last step. He looked down at the floor, stepping down would be like accepting he was a slave, that this was real and not some crazy dream. He didn't want to but managed to work up his courage and taking that final step he followed her.

No one looked at them as they walked past. There were a few hushed voices throughout the room but most of the people were just lying on their cots, staring at the ceiling. He sat down on the cot that Tina pointed at and folded his legs Indian style. "Charlie, my name is Charlie."

Tina smiled at Charlie. She liked him, he was nice, innocent. Her smile turned into a frown for she knew that he wouldn't last in this place. "Keep your head down, stay quiet. They'll leave you alone as long you behave." Charlie would never survive a punishment, let alone a hunt.

The change in subject was a little abrupt but Charlie didn't know what else he would expect her say. "What, what do you guys do around here?"

"We mainly work in the fields. Winter time is the only time we don't work steadily. There is always work at the house to do, that's where I work usually. But it's only a handful of us that work there during the winter, everyone else just lies around."

"What about food, or the bathroom, where do you guys use the restroom or bathe?" Although the room lacked décor it didn't smell, for which Charlie was very happy.

"Those are bathrooms. We take turns getting a shower. You get one every three days." Tina replied, pointing to the doors along the wall. "And we get fed twice a day. We can't work if we don't eat. The food isn't stellar but it's edible."

Charlie followed Tina's hand, looking at the ten doors again but not really seeing them. This was all so unreal. He was a slave, how could that be? He reached up and touched the collar lightly, he had forgotten about it until now. He also noticed that Tina and everyone else were wearing one.

"You'll get used to it." Tina said when she saw Charlie touch the leather. Winter was the worst, the leather rubbed against the already raw and dry skin, some people would even bleed a little.

Charlie managed a little smile for the girl. Tina was trying, he could see that, but nothing could make this situation any less horrifying. Where was Don? Why wasn't he here? Charlie would give anything to see his brother again. Don would know what to do; he would be able to find a way out of this. "Aren't there more of us then them? Haven't you guys tried to escape?"

Tina let out a little laugh. "Yes, to both questions. Rick is the owner; he's got a wife and four children. Then there's Paul, he's what you would call the slave driver. Besides him there are ten other men. A lot of people have tried to escape, most are killed. They're the lucky ones. Some of them, especially if they're good workers, are beaten into submission. If they don't die from that they are put back in the field. No one tries to escape a second time. Charlie you must obey, don't cause trouble. It's better for everyone if you just listen and do what you're told. You're not the only one who gets punished if you misbehave."

The fear in her eyes shone through strongly now. Charlie had hit a nerve. "Have you tried to escape?"

Tina looked down at her hands in her lap. "Once, when I first came here. I was a runaway. I was sixteen and I thought I was in love. Being a teenager I thought I knew everything and my parents were just buffoons who didn't understand. So I ran away with my true love. He left me in a roadside motel two weeks later. I had no money, no phone, no car. I couldn't bring myself to call my parents, I was sure they would hate me for it. So I started hitchhiking. One day a man picked me up, said he would give me a job and a roof over my head, as long as I wouldn't mind a little bit of manual labor. Next thing I knew I was here. A week after coming here I decided to run, I made it to the tree line before I was shot in the leg. That was the beginning of hell. Ever since then I've learned to just blend in, it's best." Tina looked back up at Charlie, tears in her eyes, threatening to spill over. "Not all slaves are as lucky as us. You were at Tom's; most slaves live like that their whole lives."

Charlie was really scared now, he had been afraid before but now he was terrified. He couldn't live like this. He clung to the thought of his brother, Don wouldn't stop looking for him, any minute now he could come charging down those steps, ready to bring him home. He had to, Don had too. Charlie wasn't use to labor, he wasn't use to being beaten or yelled at. Charlie thought of something. "Tina." He was almost afraid to ask. "Tina, I had a…a friend come with me. They said he would need to be broken in, what does that mean?"

**December 9****th**** at 12:15pm**

Two hundred and ninety three, that's how many holes were in the one tile of ceiling hanging directly above his head. He had woken up about two hours ago with a massive headache. His body was sore but nothing hurt too bad. A sharp contrast to the last time he had achieved consciousness. When he had tried moving not only did his vision swim but he found he couldn't. His hands and feet were strapped down to the bed he was lying in. He was able to rotate his head and was slightly disturbed to see an IV running into his arm, probably a morphine drip, which would explain the numbness. No one had come in to check on him so he had decided that counting the holes in the ceiling was fun.

"You're awake."

Seeth turned his head to see an old woman coming through the door, he started to have trouble breathing. He wasn't necessarily afraid of her, in fact he kind of liked her. She had been one of the only people to ever be kind to him. Mary had said his life numerous times when he was a child. His father, Seeth shook his head, no not his father, Nick, had spent a lot of time at Tom's. Whenever he got beat up Mary would help keep him comfortable until he healed the next day. But the fact that Mary was here meant they were at Tom's. He had been hoping that it had all been a bad dream, that Dean had tied him to a bed as some sick joke but deep down he knew that he wasn't safe any longer. Everything he had been afraid of was coming true.

"Relax, its okay. Your father and Tom are busy with some new slaves; they're really putting up a struggle. Your dad won't be in here for a while."

What Mary had said was meant to comfort him but all it did was make him even more terrified. He had heard the some muffled thumps and some shouting but he had tried to brush it off. "Is it a brown haired man, really tall and skinny? And a curly dark haired man, early thirties?" Other than his hair and age Seeth really couldn't remember much about Charlie.

"No, one of them is in his fifties, another in his late thirties, early forties, and the other one is in his twenties. The one in the middle has dark hair but it's not curly. The other two have light brown hair."

That was a little more comforting. At least Sam and Seeth were okay. He looked back up to the ceiling; he wasn't really in the talking mood.

"You'll be okay. A few of your ribs are cracked, none are broken though. Your gun shot wound is a little infected but that should clear up in a couple days. Thankfully there is no internal bleeding, but you'll be sore for a while. You had a bad fever but it's gone down with the medication. If you keep taking the pills you should be fine."

"Thanks." Seeth said. He wasn't used to this; he was used to being able to just bounce back. Damn, why did they have to kill that demon? "Do you know what happened to the two men that I arrived here with?" Not only had he failed to stay away from Nick but he had gotten his brother hurt, after all Sam had done for him.

"They were sold this morning to Rick. It could have been worse." Mary knew that one of the men had been his brother, she had heard Tom and Nick talking.

"I guess." Where was Dean? Why hadn't he come yet? Maybe Dean was sick of him. They fought a lot and he was moody, always challenging Dean. Maybe Dean thought this would be a good way to get rid of him. But Sam was here too. Shouldn't he at least come for Sam? Seeth knew Dean loved Sam more than anything.

"I would untie you and give you something to eat but Nick said not too, although he did mention coming in to check on you. I'll try to convince him to bring some food when he does."

Seeth nodded his head in response and then looked away, he didn't want Mary to see the tears in his eyes.

**December 9****th**** at 12:15pm**

Don had put on the brakes when they had opened the door to the basement. Up until then he had been pretty cooperative but when he caught a whiff of the stench that came rolling up out of the basement door he refused to go down there. As an FBI agent he had seen and smelt a lot, criminals weren't always the cleanest people. He had also smelt a body after it had been roasting in the hot L.A. sun for three days but that had been nothing compared to this. He had let Dean take the lead as the belligerent one but he wasn't going to follow when it came to this. So when the man behind him tried to force him down the stairs Don had quickly ducked and pulled away from him. The sudden action worked to his advantage and for a moment he was free, well, besides the handcuffs. When the man who had been holding on to him went to grab him Don kicked his legs out from him.

Dean smiled in vindication; he knew Don had it in him. For a brief moment he felt Nick's grip on his upper arm loosen. Dean took the opportunity and elbowed Nick in the side. With Don as the distraction Dean was able to hit home and hit hard. He heard Nick let out a grunt behind him and saw him bent over. Dean brought one leg up and kicked Nick in the face. Dean couldn't describe the satisfying feeling he had at the moment. He looked over to check on Bobby but saw him being shoved down into the basement and the door being shut. Four on two, they could take them.

Don bent down low and made a sweep with his leg, knocking a second guy to the ground. He quickly stood up and kicked the man in the head, two down, two to go. He was about to lash out at the man approaching him but a sharp pain to his back immobilized him. The guy he had just knocked down must have been quick to recover. Don fell to his knees and before he could dodge it another punch landed in his face. Now he was on the floor. When he tried to get up a foot on his chest slammed him back down. It was then he heard Dean cry out.

Dean had been about slam his foot down on Nick's head but the man had quick reflexes. Nick grabbed his foot and twisted hard. Dean bit back a cry but couldn't maintain his balance on one foot with his hands behind his back. He landed heavily on the ground. He saw Nick spring up and he tried to do the same but he was too slow. A hard kick slammed into his stomach. Dean let out a small gasp and doubled over. Another kick landed in the same spot. Dean curled even further in on himself but it didn't help. Nick drove his heel into Dean's side, causing Dean to expose his midsection a little. A quick succession of three, hard kicks caused tears to spring into his eyes. It was on the fourth kick that Dean screamed. He didn't hear any snapping or cracking but it hurt like hell and Dean wouldn't have been surprised if something inside had ruptured.

"Stop it!" Don yelled. His voice surprised him just as much as it did the other men in the room. He saw Nick's attention focus on him. The hate and anger in the man's eyes were so strong. How could a father do this to his own son? Nick strode over to him and sneered. He saw the man's foot rise into the air, directly above his head.

"I won't pay for damaged goods."

Don had to blink when he saw Nick's leg come down next to him. Another man had just walked in. 'I won't pay for damaged goods? What the hell is that supposed to mean?' Don thought to himself.

"Then take them away because I will kill Dean right now."

Don looked over at Dean when he heard the man's name. Dean was on the floor gasping for breath. Anything he was managing to take in was quick and shallow. Don looked back up at Nick and the new man. They didn't seem to notice Dean's struggle to breathe.

"Let's put them in their cages, then I'll look at them."

Don was hauled to his feet, two men grabbing his arms. As much as he didn't want to, especially now that he had heard this new man talking about cages he allowed them to lead him downstairs. The smell was overwhelming and the light was too dim to make out specifics. What Don could see though he didn't like. There were miniature jail cells, fifteen of them. Bobby had been locked into one furthest from the door. Don was shoved into one that was in the same row but they were separated by one cage. There was concern in the older man's eyes. He saw that concern grow when Dean came down the steps.

Breathing had started to get easier until they forced him down the steps. Even though he was able to breathe he didn't want to. He saw Bobby and Don were already locked away, cuffs still on. This wasn't looking good. What was going on? Dean had heard parts of what the new guy had said but hadn't been able to make sense of it. He was too busy paying attention to his ribs which were on fire. There was also a sharp pain stinging him in the side where he thought he had felt something explode but the pain was subsiding, still hurt like hell though. He was shoved into the cage closest to the door, one in between him and Don. Dean landed on his back and couldn't bite back the cry as pain shot through his side. He forced himself to stand. He didn't want to stay on the ground, the smell was worse down there.

Tom looked between the three men. All were in good shape and seemed like they could work hard. But the older one probably wouldn't sell, not enough years left in him. Tom decided he would keep him and use him for hunting. The younger two were difficult but lucky for him he knew someone who liked a challenge and needed some new slaves. "I'll give you five thousand for that one and ten thousand for the other two."

"What? No, you gave me twelve for the last two."

Both Dean and Don perked up over Nick's last statement. They glanced over at each other, each sure that it was their brothers that were being mentioned. Then what they heard sank in, it sounded like they being sold. But that couldn't be happening. No way.

"What the hell did you do with my brothers?!" Dean yelled, staggering over to the front of the cage.

"Where are they?" Don demanded. He had stayed quiet long enough, he wanted to find Charlie now.

"Look, he's too old to sell for any decent money and the other two are going to be difficult to break, I won't be able to sell them for as much either. Besides, it's not like there's anywhere else you can take them." Tom said completely ignoring the two new slaves. He loved having the corner on slavery; he always got what he wanted. No competition was good for business.

Nick looked over at Dean who was fuming. The boy might very well have been able to rip the bars apart. It was almost worth the loss of ten thousand to keep Dean around and punish him; he had had so much fun last time. But he still had Seeth, and from what Mary had said Seeth would be ready to abuse in just a few days. Then Nick would have someone to take his frustration out on. "Fine."

"Good, come on upstairs, Rita has some lunch prepared." Tom said.

**Is there an episode of Numb3rs where Colby and David got together after work and shared beer in a parking lot or something? Or am I just making it up in my head? I could have sworn there was an episode and I've been going through my DVDs but to no avail. **

**Thanks for all the reviews and thank you to my beta ALEO, she's absolutely amazing.**


	14. Chapter 14

**December 9****th**** at 1:30pm**

Dean shifted his feet again. The pain in his side had subsided slightly but still hurt like a bitch. He was sure that it would be more comfortable to sit down but no matter how he looked at it he couldn't bring himself to do that. The few seconds he had spent on the floor when Nick had shoved him in was more than enough. He was almost sure that it wasn't just dirt that was clinging to his pants. Between the three of them they hadn't really said much. Dean could tell Bobby wanted too but he seemed to be taking a back seat. Bobby seemed to be in a state of shock, disgust, surprise, and other conflicting emotions. Not much could surprise the weathered hunter; Dean didn't know what to make of it. Don seemed to be losing control though. He was pacing back and forth, looking at the door every few minutes and carried a not so pleasant look on his face.

Dean closed his eyes and grimaced when a wave of fresh pain shot down his side as he stood up straighter. They had to get out of here, somehow. He needed to find his brothers. "So, anyone got any plans?" His voice hid the pain and fear well; he had a lot of practicing doing it over the years.

Don and Bobby both looked up at Dean and Bobby was about to say something when they heard the door open. Two men came down the stairs.

"Where are they?! Where the hell are my brothers?! I swear if you've hurt them I will kill you!" Dean ignored the pain in his side and walked to the edge of the cell. The pain was worsening but he shoved it aside, he wanted his brothers. Now.

Don was tempted to start shouting as well. He needed to see Charlie, needed to know that he was okay. But so far they hadn't given him any indication that they knew who he was. If they found out Charlie was his brother then they could be used against each other. If they found out he was an FBI agent then he was screwed. For now it was best if he didn't draw any unneeded attention to himself.

"What are you doing?" Dean demanded when the two men ignored him and headed to Bobby's cell. "Bobby?"

Bobby watched the two men open his cell. He saw what looked suspiciously like tasers on each of the men's belts. Bobby avoided glancing over at Dean; the kid was already a mess. If he put up a fight they would win and Dean would lose it completely. If he was correct they had just been bought. Bobby had a feeling that no one would pay five thousand just to kill him, well, there may be some people who would but those people, and things, weren't here at the moment. Nick might, but he had handed the reins over to the other man and besides, Nick liked to torture people, draw out their death. "Find Sam and Seeth, Dean." Bobby let the men grab onto his arms and take him out and up the stairs.

"Where are you taking him?! Leave him alone! Bobby!" Dean shouted again. Then Bobby was gone. "Damn it!" He kicked at the bars, forgetting his ribs for a second. The pain came at him full force and he doubled over, concentrating on not falling down.

"Dean, calm down." Don said, walking to the edge of his cage.

"Shut up." Dean grimaced and leaned his head against the bars, at least they were nice and cool. A headache was coming on and it was going to be a big one.

"Dean they aren't going to ignore you much longer if you keep shouting." Don said. It wasn't as if he had suddenly developed a liking for the guy, he just needed all the help he could get to find Charlie and get out of here. Dean wasn't going to be of much help if he was beaten to a pulp.

"In case you haven't noticed we were just sold and it seems pretty likely that our brothers were as well. From where I'm standing it's not looking too hot." Dean said, standing up slowly and returning to his wall. There he rested his head back and focused on getting rid of the headache.

"Do you have any idea who these people are?" Don asked. It seemed like there was a whole world Don wasn't aware of. Demons, hunters, slavery. Working in L.A. as an agent he thought he had seen it all but he was wrong.

"No." Dean replied. He looked over at Don. "Do you honestly think I could be a part of something like this? Wait, don't answer that." Dean leaned his head back on the wall and closed his eyes. He had spent his whole life, sacrificed his family to defend others and this was the thanks he got. 'Just makes the trouble all so worth it,' Dean thought to himself sarcastically.

Don suddenly felt bad, he didn't know why. After all, Dean was a wanted criminal in various states for serious crimes. But there was still that nagging feeling that Don had since he had met the younger man, that Dean and Sam didn't do any of it. "I didn't mean it like that, I thought…" Don couldn't believe he was bringing this up again. "They were hunters."

Dean looked back over at Don and decided to half accept the half apology. "No, if they are I don't know them. Do you have anything on you that can pick the cuffs?" It was about time they started making a plan to get out of here.

"No. I think we're stuck here until they come down and let us out. We can try going for them again but I doubt it will work. Eventually they'll have to take off the cuffs; I think that's when we should make our move."

"Okay. What about the rest of the town? That store clerk didn't even flinch when five guns were drawn in her store. If there really is a slavery ring going on I think the whole town has got to be a part of it. Which means Sam, Seeth, Charlie, and now Bobby could be anywhere."

"We'll take it one step at a time. Getting free is our first priority."

"Okay." Dean replied, leaning his head back against the wall, the headache was gone, thank God. "Oh Don, it doesn't look like they know you and Charlie are brothers, we should keep it that way. And the fact that you're a FBI agent should be kept hidden too."

"Agreed."

**December 9****th**** at 2:00pm**

Sam wrapped his hands around the rope and pulled, lifting himself off the ground. Nothing, not even a groan or creak from the wooden structure. Paul had come back after taking Charlie into the barn and had not so gently led him towards what looked like the main house. From what he could see there was the barn, another large building, probably where they stored seed and grain and three houses. Two were relatively small but the third, where Paul had taken him, was a small mansion. Without a doubt they were on a farm and Sam now knew what was going on. It was like being in the 1800s, the town was a farming community and they had slaves that did the manual work. The only thing Sam couldn't figure out was how they kept this hidden from outsiders.

Paul hadn't actually brought him inside the house; that would have been too kind. Instead Sam was led around back where Paul briefly un-cuffed his hands and then tied them above his head to a wooden beam. And then he was left alone. So for what seemed like forever, but what Sam guessed in reality was about an hour and a half or two hours, he had tried getting free in every way conceivable. His arms were getting tired and his ankle and shoulder that had been hit by the whip were still throbbing. Besides that, the wind was picking up and while the sun was still high in the sky Sam knew that only meant it would be dropping soon, along with the temperature. Even though they were in Georgia it was cold, probably forty-five degrees and with the wind chill it felt cold enough to snow.

Sam looked up towards the house when he heard a screen door open then slam shut. It was Paul. Sam prayed the man was here to take him to the bathroom. Nick had let them pee in the woods at one rest stop but that had to be at least two days ago. It was all he could do to hold it in and right now he was in pain from trying not to go. It was like someone was constantly pushing down on his stomach and kidneys. Sam couldn't help but be a little grateful when he saw Paul was carrying a water bottle, some food, a sweater, and even the leash gave him a little comfort because that meant Paul was going to take him somewhere, hopefully the bathroom.

"Your number is 242, that is how you will be addressed. Anyone who is wearing a collar is a slave; anyone who is not will be addressed properly as Master. If you wish to speak you must do so as a slave. You are beneath us, dogs, and will be treated as such. If you can ask for an item correctly I will give you it."

Sam couldn't even speak for a minute; this guy had to be joking. They were worse than the hillbilly family that had tried to hunt him. Where did people come up with these crazy ideas? "Yes Jedi Master." Sam didn't know what he was doing but this guy must be crazy if he thought Sam would call him "Master."

Paul nodded his head, they all made smart-aleck comments like this at first. He reached behind his back and pulled out the whip. He smiled when Sam's demeanor changed.

Sam hadn't seen the whip. While it wouldn't do any lasting damage he had no desire to feel its sting again. When Paul started to walk behind him he turned to keep Paul in front of him.. He wasn't just going to let this man whip him.

"Have it your way."

Sam didn't have time to react before Paul brought the whip down. Its long stroke went from his chest to his stomach, cutting right through his shirt and skin. "Ahhhh." Sam grimaced and looked down; blood was already dripping down and collecting at his feet.

"Try again."

"Go to hell." Sam said through clenched teeth. He immediately regretted the words though when he felt the whip connect with his back. He hadn't seen Paul walk behind him. His back arched away from the offending weapon but it did no good, his hands were tied tight and he wasn't going anywhere.

"One more chance."

Sam was tempted to say something else but he couldn't bring himself to say what Paul wanted and he didn't want to get whipped again so he kept his mouth shut. Paul walked right up to him. Sam stared at him the best he could but his vision was wavering from the pain.

"When I tell you to say something you will talk."

The blow to his stomach was hard and fast. Sam let out an _oomph!_ and tried to double over but was prevented by the ropes which were now digging into his wrists. He winced and almost felt a tear come out but he forced himself to concentrate and pull it together. He wouldn't give this guy the satisfaction. Dean would be here soon, all he had to do was hold on until then. Paul was walking away now, he had picked up the food, sweater, water and leash.

Sam watched him walk away. In hindsight he probably should have just conceded. He needed to keep up his strength; he needed to be able to escape if the chance presented itself. 'Hindsight is always twenty-twenty,' Sam thought to himself.

**December 9****th**** at 7:20pm**

Don had given up; he had sat down on the dirt floor. As much as he had tried to keep standing his body was still slightly sore from his fight with Dean and he was getting tired. The adrenaline was wearing off and the stress, along with the sleepless nights and lack of food was finally catching up to him. His hands were still cuffed behind his back and sitting was only slightly more comfortable than standing. No matter how he tried sitting his hands still dug into his back and he refused to lie down on the floor.

Dean had followed suit shortly after Don had sat down. His side was still killing him and the constant shifting of his feet wasn't helping. He either had more luck at getting comfortable than Don, or he just wasn't as picky. They had maybe spoken fifty words since Bobby had been taken away and while Dean was able to sit still he was going insane from boredom. "So how long have you been a G-man?"

Don let out a small laugh. The question didn't indicate caring or curiosity. "You're that bored?"

"Yes." Dean replied simply, no use denying it.

"Fifteen years." Don said. "How long have you been a hunter?"

"You're that bored?" Dean asked, looking over at Don. "Since I was eight, that's when my dad, John Winchester, started training Sam and I." He added the John Winchester in there to make sure there was no confusion as to who his real dad was.

"What about Seeth?" Don knew that Seeth was their brother but that was all the information he had gotten about the youngest Winchester.

"We didn't know Seeth was our brother until about a year ago. Nick is our biological father, he wanted us back but we got Seeth instead and booked it."

"That's why he has a grudge against you guys?" Don didn't understand the whole thing but it looked like he would have plenty of time to figure it out.

"Yeah. Nick got us before, but Bobby helped and we got out. We've been keeping an eye out for Nick but it I guess it wasn't good enough."

"Why didn't you kill Nick before?" Don knew he was treading into dangerous territory now but the better he understood the Winchesters the easier it would be to catch them when this was all over. He was still an FBI agent and they were still wanted criminals, even if he did have his doubts about the allegations against them.

"I told you, we're not killers. Besides, we couldn't find him." Dean replied. He probably would have killed Nick when they first escaped but getting out of there had been their first priority. Dean wouldn't leave the job unfinished this time.

Don just nodded his head slightly and let the topic drop. He wasn't going to get into it with Dean right now, they needed to work together to get out of this.

Ten minutes passed by and neither of them had spoken again. Dean's head was dropping and he was struggling to stay awake. He was tired but he couldn't fall asleep, not now. His head nodded again but he quickly jerked it up when he heard the door open. Dean thought about staying sitting but when he saw Nick he was on his feet much quicker then he thought was possible for him at the moment. "Where is Sam and Seeth?"

Don had also seen who was coming down the stairs and whilst he was sure that Nick was here for Dean he stood up anyway. He suspected that things were about to go south real fast. He couldn't see anything in Nick's hands, hopefully that meant he didn't have a key, the lack of that would be the only thing to keep Dean safe.

"I wouldn't worry too much about Seeth. I like to play rough but you know I won't kill him. It's your other brother I would be worried about."

"Where the hell is Sam?!" Dean shouted, he was within spitting distance of Nick. Their faces a mere foot from each other, the only thing separating them were the cell bars.

"He got sold. I made a nice profit too. Between Sam and another guy I made twenty-four thousand."

"You son of a bitch!"

"What are you going to do about it? And besides, how else was I going to replenish my cash funds? Ever since you boys escaped my resources have all dried up. Now thanks to you and your friend over there I have enough to last a while. I'll be gone in a few days with Seeth and you'll be stuck here. No slave has ever escaped, and I guarantee you won't."

**December 9****th**** at 7:40pm**

Nick couldn't help but smile as he walked up the stairs. Tom had gone out for the evening and Nick decided it was the perfect time to say his goodbyes. Plus he needed to start his own breaking in process with Seeth. The kid had grown too smart for his own good. He needed to be knocked down a notch. And Dean was going to help him do it. Before he had gone down there Nick had put a digital tape recorder in his back pocket. With a conversation designed to get Dean to focus on Sam he would be able to show Seeth just how much his brothers cared for him.

With some quick editing on the tape Nick walked in to visit his youngest son. The smile returned when he saw the fear in Seeth's eyes.

Seeth was still lying in bed, tied down when Nick came in. He couldn't help the slight tremor that passed through his body. The pain from his previous injuries suddenly seemed worse. He flinched when Nick grabbed his hand but was careful not to pull it away, he had already learned his lesson. To his surprise the cuff was unlocked and then Nick reached over and did the same to the other hand. Seeth didn't know what to do so he just stayed where he was.

"Get up and use the restroom, it's through that door then come back."

Seeth hesitated for a moment but didn't wait too long. He grimaced when he sat up, fire spreading throughout his midsection. Standing was a little better until he forgot about his gun shot wound and put weight on his leg. He let out a hiss and grabbed onto the bed before he fell. The small laugh that he heard from behind didn't help. Remembering his leg this time he hobbled forward into the bathroom.

Never before had taking a piss been so hard but he got it done. He turned around to go back and paused. He could spend a little more time in here; pretend he was taking a dump. Seeth glanced around, there was window. It was big enough for him to fit through and didn't have a lock. He could muster up the strength to get through but then what, he couldn't go anywhere. So without any other options and not wanting to delay to inevitable Seeth walked back into the room.

"Listen to those who love you so much."

"_Where is Sam?"_

"_What about Seeth?"_

"_Where the hell is Sam?!"_

Nick hit the stop button, it was a wonder what editing could do.

Seeth stared at the tape recorder. A couple things had popped into his head when he heard Dean's voice. First off they had Dean, help was gone. But help was never going to come was it? At least it wasn't for him. For seven months he and Dean had fought, Sam said it was Dean's way of caring. Sam was wrong. He had to have been. But Sam knew Dean better than anyone, how could he have been wrong about this? Maybe Sam knew and was in on it too. But Sam and Seeth never fought, only once or twice. They generally got along, why would Sam hate him? Then again, it seemed as if everyone did. No, this had to be some sort of trick, wasn't it?

He had wanted to trust in Sam and Dean, wanted to believe in them. Never before had someone cared for him and he desperately wanted to think Sam and Dean did. But Seeth had to laugh at himself now. It had always been a joke. He had put his trust in others and it had backfired.

"They put on a real good show didn't they? Pretending to care for you, treat you like one of them. Hah. I even ran into someone who told me you had introduced yourself as Seeth Winchester. You're a pathetic loser Seeth, no one will ever take you in or care for you. They'll use you then dump you when it's convenient."

**December 10****th**** at 6:00am**

Charlie was lying down on the cot when he heard the bell go off. It was loud and obnoxious. He had bolted up, afraid it might be a smoke detector or something but when the rest of the people started to rouse sleepily he realized it was just a big alarm clock.

"Good morning."

Charlie looked around to see Tina stretching, her clothes pulled up and for a breath instant Charlie caught sight of some skin. He almost retched when he saw the hip bones sticking out and her stomach caved in slightly. Instead he looked down at his hands which were folded in his lap.

"Come on; let's get in line for the bathroom. Someone will be here in twenty minutes to take a few of us to work in the house."

Charlie followed Tina to one of the lines that were already forming. He saw the tired gazes of the other people and wondered just how many times they had heard that bell.

"Did you get any sleep?"

"A little." Charlie lied. He had lain awake all night, trying desperately to think of a way out of this. It just wasn't probable that in all these years not one slave had escaped. How did the rest of the people in the town not know? Where they in on it too?

"Liar. No one ever sleeps their first night." Tina said, smiling at Charlie to let him know it was okay to be afraid. They had all gone through this. A few people had even spent their first few nights screaming and shouting.

Charlie met her eyes and smiled back a little. It was his turn in the bathroom so he hurried in. Charlie tried using the restroom but couldn't instead he just splashed water onto his face. It felt good. The shower looked tempting but no one else had come out looking like they had taken a shower. Besides, there were other people in line; he had to give them their turn. So he came out and went over to his cot. Tina joined him a few minutes later on hers but didn't say anything. Charlie was grateful; he was nervous and didn't think he could carry on an intelligent conversation.

"135, 78, 86 and 241 up here now."

"Charlie, Charlie."

It took the second time for Charlie to hear his name. He looked up at Tina who was standing in front of him now.

"Were any of those your number?"

Charlie had to think for a minute. 135, 78, 86, 241. Yes 241 was his number. "Yes."

"Then come on, they want you to work. Just follow me okay, do as they say."

Charlie got up and followed Tina. Yesterday he had been terrified of coming down these steps, now he didn't want to go up. He would give anything to stay down here until Don arrived. He missed Don; he missed Megan, David, and Colby. He even missed Colby's jokes about him and the way Don always found a way to doubt him even though he was always right. He missed his dad too. The way his dad always made things okay, no matter what, even though both Don and he were all grown up.

Charlie stayed right behind Tina, he was doing a great impression of her shadow. There were two men at the top; both had guns, semi-automatics if he remembered correctly from the shooting range. Charlie felt the urge to run back down in the basement, at least there it was safe.

"Let's go."

Charlie followed the two men, Tina, and the other two slaves. They were headed towards one of three houses Charlie could see, the biggest one. They were on a farm, the land right now was just dirt but Charlie could guess who worked it when the weather was right. Off in the distance Charlie could see the tree line, the forest. But that was far away. He realised there would be no way someone could reach the woods before getting shot, it was too far away. When his eyes settled back on the house he saw a man right outside hanging by his arms from a wooden beam. His back was towards them but even from this distance Charlie could tell it was Sam. His heart started thumping when he saw the torn shirt and blood stains.

Sam could hear people approaching from behind him but he didn't have the strength to turn around. The night had been cold and Sam had shaken uncontrollably for most of it. His body was tired from the lack of sleep, food, and the blood loss from the whip marks. Sam had spent most of the night awake but at some point he must have fallen asleep because he came around when something started to drip down his legs. He had needed to use the restroom but Dean's influence on him had prevented that. He couldn't believe what had just happened, his body must have lost control when he fell asleep. He had just started to nod off again when he heard two men come out of the main house. They had walked by him without even looking at him. Sam had kept his head down, hoping to evade their attention both out of wanting to avoid getting hurt and the embarrassment. But when he heard Charlie's voice his head shot up.

"Sam!" Charlie couldn't help himself.

"Shut up."

Charlie was too concerned with Sam to notice one of the guards walk over to him and grab him by the collar. The man started to drag him towards the house. But what about Sam? They were just leaving him out here in the cold. Had he spent all night out here? It looked like it.

"Leave him alone!" Sam shouted after Charlie. He saw the terrified look on the man's face but other than that he looked fine. Sam watched them disappear into the house but kept his eye on the door, Paul was standing there talking to one of the guards. Then Charlie was at the door with them. Paul walked out, the whip in plain sight this time. Sam shifted his feet. His eyes darted from Charlie to Paul, they were going to use him to teach Charlie a lesson. He quickly turned his back to the door so Charlie wouldn't see his face when the whip hit. But Paul caught on and spun him around before walking behind him. Then Sam felt it. He tried not to scream but he couldn't help but clench his teeth and cry out a little. After a few seconds Sam opened his eyes and Charlie was gone. But Paul was still there.

"Usually older dogs are potty trained."

Sam was close enough to spit on the man but he knew what would happen and he didn't want to be whipped again. He knew that Paul knew he had won. Sam couldn't stay in these clothes, no matter how much he had to lower his pride to get out of them. So with a deep breath Sam gave in. "Master, can I please get some new clothes." It killed him to say it and the knife was twisted in the wound when Paul smiled.

"Good boy."

Sam didn't move when Paul latched a metal chain onto the collar around his neck. He was grateful when his arms were untied but held back a sigh, no use giving Paul even more pleasure in this. Paul led him towards the house and Sam followed like an obedient puppy. He wanted to throw up. Sam couldn't help but feel like he was defrosting when he stepped into the house. It was warm and the wind couldn't get to him here. The whole house looked like it was under construction but Sam didn't care, it was the Ritz Carlton to him. There was no sign of Charlie or any of the other people he had seen with him. Paul yanked on the leash and Sam walked forward into a bathroom. Another man walked by and handed Paul some clothes. They had known he was going to cave and it killed Sam that they were able to predict it.

"You have five minutes to do whatever in here. In five minutes I will drag you back outside whether you are clothed or not." Paul said as he threw the clothes at Sam and slammed the door.

Sam didn't waste anytime. He took off the dirty clothes and turned on the shower. He needed to get warm and rinse off. The warm water rushed over his body and Sam allowed himself a sigh. The water stung his open wounds but the pain was worth it. Sam allowed himself only two minutes in the shower before he stepped out and started drying off with a towel that he found under the sink. He slipped the clothes on with two minutes to spare. Next he started looking around for something to use as a weapon if he ever got the chance but he couldn't find anything. He was sitting calmly on the edge of the bathtub when Paul walked in.

"Come."

Sam stood up and walked over. This time he flinched when he heard the chain snap onto the collar. Before Paul had the chance to yank him around again Sam followed. He was led back outside and tied up in the same fashion. He wanted to ask for food but didn't want to press his luck. He couldn't believe he had been allowed to take a shower. His stomach was rumbling but he would take what he could get.

**December 10****th**** at 9:00am **

Charlie's shoulders were already hurting. He had been assigned a room that had already been completely gutted. His job was to put insulation in the walls, put drywall up, sand the walls if need be, paint them, and then lay down wooden floors. So far he had gotten the insulation put in and he was starting on his first piece of drywall. All those years as a kid when his dad made him help fix the house were finally paying off. But now his body was sore from the manual labor it wasn't use to and his stomach was starting to growl. A few times Charlie had been tempted to stop but there was no door on the room and there was a man right outside watching him. The man walked back and forth between his room and the rooms that the other three people had been put into. But there was only a ten second gap between each pass, no time to stop or make a run for it. Besides, it wouldn't be him that would be punished, it would be Sam. Charlie hated how they knew that punishing Sam would be more effective than punishing him, was he that transparent?

He had appreciated Sam's attempt to turn away but it hadn't helped any, especially since Paul had spun him around anyway. How could someone do that to a fellow human being? Charlie had seen Paul's face when he did it, the man had enjoyed it no doubt about it. Charlie couldn't wait for Don to show up with the cavalry.

"Here, five minutes to eat then you go back to work."

Charlie had been concentrating so hard on not nailing himself to the wall while he was attempting to secure the section of drywall that he hadn't noticed the guard until he spoke and threw a sandwich in. Charlie waited until the man left and then took the sandwich out of the zip loc bag and began to eat. He hesitated before putting it in his mouth but remembered what Sam had said, they wouldn't have bought them just to poison them. He sat down on the pieces of wood that were meant for the floor and watched the door closely while he tried to make the sandwich last. When he glanced up to see if anyone was coming something caught his gaze. He looked back up and saw a telephone sitting on the counter about ten feet from the doorway of his room. He was still staring at it when the guard walked by. Charlie quickly averted his gaze downward and took a big bite. 'A phone,' Charlie thought to himself.

**Alright guys, updates should be coming faster because I'm off school and have a lot of free time. A goal of mine would be to have this done by Jan. 22 when I go back to school but we'll see. I'm still not sure how long this is going to end up being. But I do know what's going on so don't worry.**

**As always thanks to ALEO for betaing. And please read and review. **


	15. Chapter 15

**December 10****th**** at 11:00am**

It was almost midday, judging by the sun and it had hardly warmed up at all. The wind was picking up too; it had to be gusting up to thirty to forty mile per hour. Sam never knew it got so cold in Georgia. He had been here once or twice in the winter and it had always been nice, high forties, low fifties. 'Global warming my ass,' Sam said to himself. The sweater was doing a better job at keeping him warm than his t-shirt had been but it was still damn cold. His lips were chapped and his hands were so dry they were starting to crack and bleed. Anytime the wind blew it felt as if his face, hands, and wrists were being stabbed by a thousand tiny needles. But his wrists were the worst. Twice he had been jolted awake during the night when his feet gave out and he had fallen as far as his arms would allow. In the shower he had had to bear through the burning sensation whenever the water hit his raw skin. But the rope had continued to rub and there was new blood now which quickly caked on his forearms from the wind. He was hungry too, much hungrier than he previously had thought he was. His stomach was grumbling loudly enough Sam bet people in the house could hear it.

So when he saw Paul coming out with some food he was couldn't have been happier, until he saw the whip as well. It killed Sam when his mind started contemplating going along with whatever Paul told him to say or do. Sam didn't want to give in, it wasn't the Winchester way. But he was hungry and his back hurt from the previous whippings. The sweater kept it protected from the wind for which Sam was thankful for but if Paul started punishing him again then it would be useless.

To his surprise Paul laid what looked like a bowl of oatmeal on the ground and went to untie his hands. Sam's arms dropped so fast and hard that he thought he was going to fall down. He resisted rubbing his wrists knowing that it would only hurt. Sam forgot the whip for a second and went to go for the food. The crack against his knuckles was loud and broke through the silence of the air. Sam drew his hands back quick and brought them into his body, all five of his knuckles were bleeding. Sam didn't want to think about all the people that had to suffer before Paul perfected that move. He stood up and backed away, not daring to say anything. He kept one eye on the oatmeal, afraid that he had just lost his chance but one eye on Paul's hand that held the whip.

"I did not give you permission."

Sam looked up at Paul, his mouth was set in a straight line but Sam could see the enjoyment in his eyes. He didn't want to give in, asking had been hard enough before but he was hungry and losing strength fast. He needed the energy to keep warm. It was no longer a question of could he escape but could he survive long enough for Dean to come. He looked back down at the plate of food, tempted not to say anything but hunger won out. "Ca…" Sam shivered when a particularly strong gust of wind blew past, almost taking the plate with it. "Can I eat master?" His shoulders dropped even more and he lowered his eyes, Sam had never been so ashamed of himself. He needed to survive but he was losing his pride as he did it.

"Good boy, yes."

Sam tried to restrain himself from moving too fast for the bowl but couldn't help it. When he had taken a hold of it and was about to stand up he dropped back down, the searing pain going all the way down his back. He managed to catch himself and ended up on all fours. His back was on fire. He struggled to breathe through the pain. That hit had been harder than any of the others previously. While the past whippings had drawn a little blood they had merely been scratches compared to this. There was so much blood Sam could feel it pooling on his back and dripping down his side. When the ground started to sway he closed his eyes and concentrated on not falling down.

"Dogs don't eat with their hands."

Sam waited until he felt like he was on solid again. He opened his eyes and waited to make sure he wasn't going to tip over. When he was sure he was steady he looked up at Paul. The man was staring down at him with satisfaction written all over his face. 'He is really pushing it,' was all Sam could think. Sam looked back down to the bowl, realizing for the first time there was no spoon. He wasn't going to eat out of a bowl like a dog. But he was hungry, he needed the energy and the oatmeal was still warm, he could see the steam rising off of it. Closing his eyes and counting to ten Sam thought about it again. For a second Sam was prepared to lower his head but stopped, he couldn't do it. He had been degraded enough for one day and he was going to stop it now. So to make up for the brief moment of hesitation Sam simply reached out and turned the bowl over, dumping its contents on the ground. He sat up, something difficult considering his back, and looked Paul in the eye. This time he saw the whip coming.

**December 10****th**** at 2:00pm**

Don's eyes fluttered open. He had fallen asleep. On one hand Don berated himself for going to sleep, something could have happened, although he wasn't sure what and if something had happened chances were good he couldn't have done anything about it. However, he felt rested and better then before. His back and arms were sore from the way he had spent the time sleeping against the wall but his head was clearer and some of the soreness from Dean and his fight earlier had disappeared. He glanced over at the younger man and saw he was sleeping. Dean had rested his head on the wall instead of his back and his legs were curled into his body. Don didn't know how he managed to do that with the kicks the ribs he had received earlier.

Don started to look around the room, there were other cells and they were all bare. For that he was thankful, no one should have to go through this. _'Wait, I can see,'_ Don thought to himself. He looked across the room and there was a small window at the top of the wall. Too small for anybody to fit through. Other than the cages the room was bare. No floors, just dirt, no lighting or plumbing or fixtures of any kind. A perfect place to keep people that you didn't want to escape. Don let out a shudder when he realized Charlie must have been here.

Charlie had been at crime scenes but never actually a part of them. Don always shielded him from the really bad stuff. Looking back Don realized that may not have always been a good thing, but Charlie was his little brother and he was going to do whatever necessary to protect him from anything that posed a threat. Besides, nothing could ever prepare someone for a situation like this. Don hadn't been prepared and he had seen small slavery rings before, particularly with Asian women coming over here. But they were never in this bad of a place. They usually had a bed, a bathroom, the basics. The Asian girls would go stay with rich people for free and in turn they did the housework. And no wealthy person wanted smelly, dirty people coming into their house.

He was drawn out of his thoughts when he heard the door at the top of the stairs open. A quick glance over at Dean and Don noticed he didn't wake up. "He must be out of it." Don murmured to himself. For a brief moment Don thought about waking him up but then the shouting would start and Dean might end up getting hurt again. Dean needed to be in fighting condition so when push came to shove he was able to actually push. Don stood up; he did not want to be on the ground when he dealt with these people.

Don recognized Tom but not the other three men with him. One was average looking, older, probably someone's grandpa. The other two were younger, taller, and looked like they belonged on the cover of Muscle Fitness. They were just a little imposing.

"These are the two, here are the keys to the cells and the cuffs, if you need any help let me know, I'll be upstairs." Tom said and then headed back up.

Don watched Tom walk away and saw Dean start to stir out of the corner of his eye. His gaze returned unsteadily to the three men standing there, they were just staring at the two of them. Sizing them up.

"Who the hell are you?" Dean asked. He had been sleeping very nicely until he heard voices. Once he recognized them as foe it didn't take him long to become fully awake. He stood up and walked to the edge of the cage.

Don wished Dean would just keep his mouth shut. He was going to get them into more trouble and ruin any chances of the others letting down their guard and allowing them to escape. Though he couldn't help but like the break in attention when Dean made the comment.

"You two are my slaves, my animals. Animals do what they are told. Animals that don't work for their keep don't live." The older man said to the two animals in the cages. He then turned to his two men. "Leave the cuffs on them, take them to the van and let's go, don't allow them to speak." He turned back to the two animals in the cages. "Animals don't talk." With that he walked upstairs.

Dean looked over at Don with an incredulous look on his face that just screamed, 'You've got to be kidding.'

Don returned the expression but willed Dean not to react irrationally.

"You touch me Hulk and I'll kill you." Dean said as one of the men started to unlock the door to his cell.

Don closed his eyes and sighed, too late.

It took everything in him not to back away from the large man but Dean wasn't going down without a fight. None of these sick bastards were going to treat him like a slave or call him an animal. But he was still sore from his last beating and not looking forward to another. Hulk walked up to him and grabbed hold of the back of his neck. Despite his large size the man was fast and Dean wasn't able to counteract before he was shoved to the ground. A sharp kick drove itself into his side and Dean found himself blinking back tears. He gasped for breath, Nick's kicks had been love taps compared to this. A strong hand closed around his neck and Dean couldn't breathe any longer. He was hauled off the ground and slammed against the wall. The cuffs dug cruelly into his back and wrists and stars appeared in front of his eyes when his head connected with the wall.

"Talk again and I won't be so kind."

Dean fell the foot to the ground and almost collapsed when the man finally let go of him. His lungs were starving for air but every breath sent a sharp pain down his side. Something had definitely cracked from that kick. He was still trying to breathe when the monster of a man grabbed his upper left arm and started pulling him out of the cage and up the stairs.

Don had watched quietly from his cell. He was torn, part of him screamed to fight back, like Dean. And normally he would have. He wasn't someone who just took orders, there was a reason he was lead agent. But then there was Charlie. He had to stay well enough to find Charlie and get out. When the second guy opened his door and reached for his arm though the fight instinct kicked in. For him it was always fight never run. He backed up and moved his arm out of the way, okay not really fighting back but he wasn't going to let Dean upstage him and make him look like the weakling. The man stepped closer but this time Don stood his ground. The punch came too fast and was too unexpected for Don to do anything but roll with it. It was like one of those cartoons where they character's jaw goes completely off to one side. By the time Don felt reality return and could see things again he was on the ground. His jaw wasn't broken but he wouldn't be surprised if the entire lower half of his face was black and blue the next morning.

Just like Dean he was hauled to his feet but was spared the wall slam. The man kept a firm grip on the back of his neck and Don winced when the man's thumb found a pressure point. Don knew that as long as that finger was there he was couldn't move, or rather wouldn't move, he knew the kind of pain he would be in if he did; he had used it on criminals before. They walked upstairs but stopped before they reached outside. The older gentleman had been waiting and now motioned for them to stop. He was pointing his finger at Don.

"He's older than thirty five, I'm not an idiot. I want five thousand back."

Why did they keep saying he was older? Don certainly wasn't in his twenties but he wasn't ready to keel over any time soon. As he started to feel offended Don had to laugh at how something little like this would bother him right now. So in an attempt to do some recon, although it looked like they were leaving this place, he scanned the room. They were in your basic living room, couch, television, pizza boxes. He looked over to his right when he saw Nick appear through an open door. Before Nick closed it he caught a glimpse of a young man inside, lying on the floor. His face was to the door and Don saw the unmistakable mask of pain. When the door shut Don glanced back up at Nick and saw a smile on his face as he walked into the open kitchen. Don looked back at the door and realized who the man, more like kid, was. 'That must be Seeth,' Don thought to himself. Don hadn't asked how old Seeth was but he couldn't have been more than twenty. There were bruises littering the kid's face and Don hadn't missed the red soaked bandage on Seeth's leg. But even though the injuries Don could see Dean in Seeth's features. They looked so much it alike it would be impossible for them not to be related.

He was still staring at the closed door when he felt hands pull at his upper arm. He looked away and followed the man outside.

"Get in."

Don did what he was told and climbed into the back of a white worker's van, joining Dean who was still bent over and breathing hard. The door was slammed shut behind him and for a moment they were alone. "You've got to stop pissing them off; they're going to kill you."

"Nah." Dean winced slightly at the pain talking induced. "They just paid a lot of money for this handsome face." He tried to give one of his shit eating grins but it came out more like a grimace. That kick had really hurt and was tiring him out.

Don was ready to say something else when the front doors opened and the three men climbed into the front seat. The ride was quiet, some country music coming from the radio but no talking.

Dean swore they hit every pot hole in the road just for him. It was next to impossible to steady himself with his hands cuffed behind his back, even sitting down. And each time the van jolted he was almost positive a rib moved. When they hit a particularly big bump Dean couldn't help by let out a small cry and a fairly large gasp. By the time they stopped he was bent over with his head resting on the ground, trying not to cry in front of Don. He could never live with himself.

"Get out."

Dean watched Don climb out with moderate difficultly but in the end was successful at staying on his feet. When Hulk looked at him expectantly Dean just shot him a look that said, 'You've got to be kidding." However, when Hulk started to climb into the van Dean somehow managed to start moving. The progress was slow and painful, excruciatingly painful. By the time he reached the edge of the van Dean was ready to pass out. 'How the hell did he do this to me?' Dean thought. It didn't feel as if anything was broken but the pain surpassed almost anything else he had ever felt. Almost, Dean reminded himself when memories of the electric collar came back.

He closed his eyes for a brief moment to prepare himself for getting down when he felt the strong vice on the back of his neck. The next moment his face was smashed into the ground. He curled up into a ball on the ground, his knees tucked up under him and his head resting on the hard, frozen soil.

Don turned around when he heard the loud thump. He saw the man that Dean had dubbed Hulk laughing and Dean on the ground. Instinctually Don moved to help him but was held back by the hand on his arm. The fingers dug into his flesh and Don let out a small gasp. "You're going to kill him." Don couldn't just stand by and watch them do this. He had built his life around helping people, dealing with this sort of stuff and now he was powerless to do anything.

This time he saw the fist coming but with the man's tight hold on him he couldn't go anywhere. He let out an oomph as the fist connected with his stomach. If it weren't for the man's hand he was sure he would have fallen over. Instead he doubled over as much as he could and let out a cough, his breath showing in the cool air. He was tempted to say something else, he was tired of being the cooperative, cool headed one but reminded himself that Charlie needed his help.

Dean was hauled to his feet and let the man practically drag him along. He had heard Don and appreciated the small gesture but it didn't make the pain go away. Don was in front and he could see the man was hunched over a bit from the punch but other than that he appeared fine. Dean on the other, despite his best efforts, kept tripping over his feet and if it weren't for Hulk he would have fallen about half a dozen times in the few feet they had walked. So Dean kept his head down and concentrated on putting one foot in front of the other.

Don wanted to look back, to check on Dean but knew what would happen if he did so he forced himself to keep his gaze straight ahead. They were being led to a small shed about forty feet away from a bigger house. There was a barn eighty feet on the other side and a lot of pastures and fields behind all of it. They got to the shed and walked in. There was dirt for a floor and no light, not much different then the hell hole they had just come from. Don saw some tools and pieces of wood lying around but the shed looked largely unused. The giant that was holding onto him let go of his arm as he shoved him to the ground.

"Sit."

He felt his legs collapse under the strong pressure of the man. A few seconds later Dean was shoved, although he would have fallen on his own, next to him. Dean didn't quite go straight down and ended up half sitting on him. Don was tempted to shrug him off but didn't want to do any more damage so he let Dean get off on his own.

Dean let out a small hiss of pain when he finally landed on the ground. His side was throbbing and felt like it had been split in two. He really wished Seeth still had his healing powers. He looked up when he heard a metal door creak open and saw the two men shoving some wood into an old potbelly stove. One of them lit a match and held it up, waiting for the wood to catch fire. Dean wanted to believe they were warming up the shed for them, showing a little hospitality, but he had a feeling that wasn't what was happening.

Don saw them start the fire in the stove he hadn't seen before and sat up tall. He didn't know what was happening but he was sure this wasn't going to end well for them. One of the two men started rummaging around a pile of metal pokers next to the stove and before long came up with what looked like cattle branding iron. Don scooted back a little. He really didn't like where this was going. He looked over at Dean whose eyes were wide open.

Dean saw the fire get larger and saw the branding iron go in. He felt Don looking at him and met the man's gaze. They were both trying to hide their fear but neither of them were doing a good job of it. Don scooted back a little, unconsciously and Dean tried but stopped when a sharp pain flared up in his side. Dean closed his eyes and held his breath, waiting for the pain to go away. He couldn't believe it when he heard the two men start talking about, what was that, yes, football.

Don watched as the giants debated loudly over the New England Patriots and Green Bay Packers. They weren't even trying to remain quiet, it was as if Dean and he weren't here and they didn't have a care in the world. For ten minutes this went on. Don tried desperately to look for something to use to get these damn cuffs off but saw nothing.

Dean kept his head down and tried not to move. Every time he did a new wave of pain would come and each was worse than the last.

"I think it's ready."

"Look's like it; we'll do the older one first."

Don perked up and focused his attention on the two men when he heard them reference him. The branding iron was pulled out and they stepped towards him. Don scooted back some more, this time fully aware that he wanted to put some distance between him and the men. The one without the branding iron grabbed hold of the front of his shirt and prevented him from pulling back. Don tried to kick out but got nothing but air. The other one approached his right arm and pulled up his sleeve. He started to jerk. The first one shoved on his chest, slamming him to the ground. The wind was knocked out of him but his adrenaline was pumping. The man was strong though and one hand on his chest and the other on his left arm held him down securely.

"Stop it! Leave him alone!" Dean yelled. He tried moving closer to Don, wanting to help but the pain in his side was too much. Besides, he wouldn't be able to do anything.

Don had never been one to lose his cool but right now he was freaking out. The one with the branding iron pulled the sleeve of his shirt up, exposing his shoulder. He saw the branding iron come closer and could see the hot red metal. He tried to squirm away but was held fast. Then it touched him. The smell of burnt skin rose up immediately and oddly he smelled his upper arm burning before he felt it. But that didn't last long. He let out the scream when he felt his flesh being charred away. They held it there for five seconds but Don could have sworn it was there for hours. He was still screaming when they took it away. Seconds later he started gasping for breath but the pain didn't lessen. The cool air wasn't helping his burnt skin and the wind that seeped through the cracks in the shed might as well have been knives stabbing into him. They had let go of him but Don remained down for the count. The heat in his shoulder was rapidly dissipating but the pain wasn't. It was spreading and working it's way down his arm. For a brief moment he couldn't feel his fingers and Don wished that his whole arm would go numb.

"Don!" Dean looked over and watched the FBI agent lie on the ground trying to catch his breath. His skin had remained glowing red for a few seconds after they had pulled the iron away. Now it was just brick red, inflamed from the injury. Dean saw the two men shove the iron back in the fire for a few seconds, and then pull it back out. They were heading for him now.

"Don't you dare fucking touch me." He couldn't help it. Dean took a page out of Don's book and kicked at the guy holding the poker. While it killed his side and Dean collapsed on his uninjured side right after he was more successful and caught the guy in the shin. Hulk let out a curse and dropped the iron. The other man was on him in and instant though. Dean was rolled over onto his stomach and a knee was driven into his back. He clenched his teeth through the pain. A rib had to be broken; there was no other explanation for it hurting this much. Tears were now welling up in his eyes but Dean managed to keep from letting them loose. He had cried twice in his lifetime, both times before he was eight years old. That all changed when his shoulder erupted in fire.

His scream matched Don's. It would have been louder if it hadn't been muffled by the ground. His skin melted under the hot iron as it bore itself into his arm. Another wave of fresh burning skin filled the air and Dean had the pleasure of knowing it was his skin burning. He tried to pull away from the source of his pain but the knee was shoved harder into his back. Not that he could feel it, or even his side for that matter. All he could feel now was the agony of his shoulder being burned to a crisp. He let out a second scream after a small gasp and a tear fell to the ground as black dots started to swarm in front of his eyes.

**December 10****th**** at 7:00pm**

"Clean up. In five minutes come out here."

Charlie turned around to see one of the men who had brought him here this morning standing in the doorway. He lowered his arm and almost threw the paint brush in the tray. His arms were sore and ached from all the work. He had managed to put up all the drywall and he was working on his third coat of paint. He poured the excess paint from the tray back into the can and carried the tray and pain roller out with him. There was no where for him to wash them but he didn't want to leave any mess. He wouldn't be able to watch Sam get punished again for his mistakes.

"Wash them in the sink."

The water was warm and Charlie did his best to scrub the paint off his hands while he also washed the tray and roller. He glanced over at the phone which was a mere foot from his hand. Help was so close but there was no way Charlie could pick up the phone, dial the FBI and tell them where he was while the man stood right there. His eyes met with Tina's who was waiting behind him for her turn to wash her supplies. It was almost as if she knew what he was thinking because she had "Don't do it" clearly written all over her face.

Once he was done he put the supplies back in the room as instructed and waited for the others. His breath hitched in his throat when he saw Sam and he almost said something but stopped himself, it would only hurt Sam even more. And from the looks of it that had already been done. Sam was wearing a sweater that he hadn't been wearing this morning but there were rips in it from the whip. The back portion was almost in shreds. Sam looked up when they walked by and Charlie's eyes met his. They were depressed but Charlie could still see some fight in them. Sam hadn't given up hope. Despite everything Sam looked ready to put into action whatever he could come up with. Charlie had to get to that phone. Sam would do it, Charlie knew he would. But he needed help. He needed Tina.

Charlie didn't think they could walk fast enough back to the basement of the barn. Once there he hurried over to his bed, motioning Tina to follow. "Do they have listening devices in here?'

"What?" Tina didn't like the look she saw in Charlie's face, she had seen it before and it always spelled disaster.

"Can they hear what we're saying?" Charlie asked in a hushed, excited tone of voice.

"No." Tina wanted to lie, wanted to say yes. She knew what Charlie was going to say, she knew what he wanted.

"I need your help." Charlie was going to continue but was cut off by Tina. When she started to speak he was forced to calm down and he saw the fear in her eyes.

"Charlie didn't you hear a word I said. No one ever escapes, they never have. If they try they're lucky if they get killed."

"Tina, I can get us out of here, I can get everyone out of here."

"How Charlie? How are you going to succeed where everyone has failed?"

"The phone in the main house. I don't need to escape, just get on that phone. My brother is a FBI agent, he knows I'm missing. If I can just get on the phone with him for ten seconds we'll be free. I'll tell him where we're at and he'll come get us." Charlie needed to take this opportunity, Tina had to understand that this was their way out.

"Charlie there's no way they are going to let you get to that phone. Those guards are there everyday, they never leave." Tina felt bad for Charlie. She knew what he was going through, they had all gone through it before. That last minute desperation where they thought they were the ones that were going to get free, going to save everyone. But no one ever did. This desperation came right before they were broken in, Charlie hadn't lasted very long.

"That's why I need you, someone else to create a distraction. I don't know what yet but something. Maybe if you try to escape, just take off running. That will draw the guard away for enough time for me to call my brother." Charlie needed her to help him. He needed to get out of here. One day of fixing up a room had worn him thin; he couldn't imagine what the farming would be like. And do this everyday from now on, he couldn't do it. And he didn't think anyone else should have to either. Tina was a nice girl, she didn't deserve this.

"No Charlie. I told you, you don't want to try and escape. You think what they're doing out there to your friend is bad, just try escaping and see what happens."

"Then I'll do it, I'll give you the phone number and you can call him while I distract him." Charlie had forgotten about what she had said or he wouldn't have suggested she sacrifice herself. He may not be the knight in shining armor but he wouldn't put Tina through that.

"No Charlie. Just go to bed. You need to rest for tomorrow." Tina laid her head at the end away from Charlie's bed and pulled the thin sheet up and over her, hiding her head and successfully ending the conversation. She wanted to escape, she did, it just wasn't possible.

Charlie stared at Tina for a while after she'd lain down and even after she had fallen asleep. What could they have done to her to make her like this? Salvation was just ten feet away. One call to Don and he would be here within two days. He would have to suffer until then but Charlie could make do, as long as he knew help was on the way. He needed to convince Tina to help him, or one of the other two guys that had gone with them to the house. Charlie had to do this, he had to try.

**As always, thanks a bunch to ALEO. I hope everyone had a Merry Christmas. **


	16. Chapter 16

**December 10****th**** at 7:10pm**

Dean first became aware of how cold he was. Whatever he had on wasn't very warm. There was some wind, he could hear it whistling and howling but only a few gusts reached him. Then there was the feeling of something cool around his neck. Dean tried to figure out what it was but couldn't. He wanted to reach up and find out but it felt so good just lying here. His shoulder ached and his entire midsection felt like it had been flattened by a train but the pain wasn't unbearable. He was in a comfortable position and no one was yelling at him. In addition there were no cuffs on, it felt good not to have metal constantly digging into his wrists. Other than being cold and sore Dean considered life good right now, compared to what it had been recently. So Dean decided he would lay here for a moment, put off waking up.

That worked for five seconds. Then he heard a chain scrape across the ground. Dean furrowed his eyebrows in annoyance, who would be making that noise? 'Don,' Dean thought. He opened his eyes and sure enough saw the shadow of the FBI agent. It looked as though Don was straining to reach something. "What are you doing?" Dean asked in a groggy voice.

Don jumped back, falling on his butt when he failed to pivot gracefully. He let out a small sigh when he realized it was just Dean. "How are you?" Don asked. The younger man looked like he was a little more comfortable than he had been last time he had been awake. Don's eyes traveled to the bandage on Dean's arm, the blood spot hadn't grown any; at least the bleeding had stopped.

Dean was a little taken aback by the question. He never would have imagined an agent asking him if he was okay. "Fine." Dean asked, grimacing at the same time as he tried to sit up. His ribs were starting to flare up again with the effort. And then there was his arm. Dean had forgotten about it somehow and he regretted it. "Damn it." Dean hissed out.

"Your arm remember?" Don hadn't meant for it to be sarcastic, really he hadn't.

"Thanks for reminding me now." Dean replied back. He managed to get up without another incident and leaned against the nearby wall. Once there he brought his hand up to his neck to discover the source of the coolness and now a bit of constriction. Dean panicked for a second when he felt the collar but quickly reassured himself that this was leather, the electric one had been nylon. A chain was attached to the collar and led down to a stake in the ground. Dean looked at, wondering why Don hadn't just pulled the stake out of the ground. 'First I'm cattle now I'm a dog, could they at least make up their mind,' Dean thought to himself.

"I've tried, I can't pull it out, it's cemented in there."

Don must have read his expression so Dean shifted his gaze to his surroundings. It was dark, cold, and the floor was once again dirt. Not unlike the first cell they were in expect this had wooden boards for walls, there were no cells, and the room was smaller. "I guessed I passed out."

"No, your friend sang you a lullaby and you drifted off to sleep peacefully." Don said, okay that one was meant to be sarcastic. Being stuck in here, treated like an animal and unable to get to Charlie or even found out where he was or even if he was okay was really starting to wear on Don.

While it had been an insult Dean had to smile inwardly. He was rubbing off on Don, he had taught him so well. But even through his pseudo-proud father moment Dean had to come back with something. "Was it Rock-a-Bye Baby because that one's my favorite. I really hope it was that one."

Don stared back at Dean. Even though he could hardly see Dean Don could just picture the smirk on his face. "You've been out for four to five hours." Don said, trying to end the banter. He was tired and not in the mood. And he was hungry. And he needed to use the restroom.

Dean was tempted to say something else but he was tired as well. Not so much physically tired but emotionally and mentally. He had been racking his brain trying to come up with ways to escape ever since they got in this predicament without any luck. Combine that with the worry about Sam and Seeth and he was ready to take another nap. "Do you know where we are?"

"In the same shed, the large sheet of wood leaning against the wall was covering up a door." Don said, glancing over at the axe he had been trying to reach but it was too far, there was no way he was going to get near it. They were once again stuck.

"Did they say anything, about Sam or Seeth? Or Charlie?" Dean added when he remembered Don's younger brother. It was easy to forget there were other people than just Sam, Seeth, and him. It always been just Sam and him, it had even taken awhile to get use to Seeth hanging around. But he had and having a second younger brother wasn't as bad as he thought it was going to be. Seeth wasn't as much as a pain in the ass as Sam, especially once he started to open up and get used them. While Dean and Seeth fought, sometimes violently they usually got along really well. Whereas Sam and him would go through a little fight just about everyday. All in all Dean figured it equaled out.

"No." Don paused. He wondered if he should tell Dean about seeing Seeth. While Don wasn't a hundred percent sure the person he had seen was Seeth he was ninety nine point nine percent sure. Don decided he had to, he would want to know if it had been Charlie. "I saw Seeth though."

"Where?!" Dean practically shouted. He started to sit up straight but when his ribs kindly reminded him of their presence so he settled for a little scooting.

"Back at Tom's, when they brought me upstairs to go out to the van. The man who was leading me stopped to talk to the older man and Tom. While I was standing there Nick came into the room. I saw Seeth on the ground in the room that Nick had just come from. He was in pain and had a white bandage wrapped around his upper thigh but other than that he looked okay. There didn't appear to be any injuries too serious, but I was far away." Don didn't want to discourage Dean but he didn't want to put any false hopes in the man either.

"Son of a bitch." Dean muttered to himself. He couldn't wait to get his hands on Nick. Dean had killed a lot of things in his lifetime. He craved killing when it came to supernatural baddies but rarely had he ever wanted to kill a person. He had wanted to harm some people but hardly ever had he felt an intense to desire to murder someone. Dean could kill Nick twenty times and never once regret it. One of the things that drove his rage the most was knowing that Nick had done this to Seeth his whole life and even when they were free Seeth was still hurting because of him. And now Nick had Seeth back, Dean had failed him.

Don wanted to say something. He felt like it was somehow his fault that Seeth was hurt, just because he was the one delivering the bad news but he knew that he would have wanted to hear it if it had been Charlie. Unfortunately Don was never good at consoling. He always brought Megan along, or if all else failed David or Colby when he had to visit family members. Hell, he hadn't even been able to come up with something to say to his father when Charlie had gone missing. Neither his father nor brother did consoling very well either. 'It must be an Eppes's men trait,' Don said to himself. His thought pattern was interrupted when the two men who had brought them here suddenly walked in. He saw Dean come out of his thoughts as well.

"Put them on."

Dean and Don both looked down in sync when a pair of cuffs was thrown at each of them. Dean wanted to say something, wanted to resist but he was already hurt, bad. His ribs were still sore and the blood was still pounding through his arm making it feel like it was going to fall off from the pressure he had put on it earlier. Dean looked over at Don who he could tell was also thinking about it. Dean could see the resistance coming out in Don's eyes; he could see Don was ready to fight. Dean did probably the smartest, well, safest thing he had ever done in his life. He reached out and started to put the cuffs on.

"In the back."

Dean looked up just as he was about to snap the other half of the cuff on. He had hoped that if he just put his hands in the front they wouldn't notice. Why did they have to make complying so hard? Dean did his best not to irritate his ribs or his burnt shoulder as he moved his arms behind his back and locked the second cuff in place. He looked over at Don who was watching him with a slightly confused face.

Don was tired of being the subordinate, compliant one. From the minute Nick had wrapped his arms around his neck and held the gun to his head Don had let his FBI training take over. He knew that the best way out of a situation like this was to be cooperative. Now big brother mode was kicking in. He realized that the only way he was going to get out of here was to take every opportunity he had. And besides, he was tired of letting them get away with treating him like this. So when they had thrown the cuffs at him and ordered him to put them on Don was ready for a verbal fight. And he was ready for Dean to back him up so when Dean didn't say anything Don got curious. When Dean proceeded to put the cuffs on Don became confused. A few short seconds later and Don was brought back down to Earth. Dean was taking a page out of his book. This was a simple request. They weren't getting hurt, at least not yet. And Dean had finally realized that the best way was to go along. Don took a deep breath and put the cuffs on. Who would have ever thought that Dean Winchester would be the one to get him to act rationally?

Don watched as one of the men stepped out and then came back shortly with two bowls of warm food. Don could see the steam rising off the surface of the bowls. His stomach growled on cue. All of a sudden his throat was parched and he was famished. Don had never been a light eater, he had been sure to surround himself with people who made good food. That was part of the reason he spent more time at his father's, or rather Charlie's, house than his. Even Megan was a pretty good cook, she would occasionally bring in some food for the team and it was always delicious.

"Sit."

Don was tempted once again to say something, to start something but he wanted the food bad. But the way the man had just told him to sit, it was as if he was talking to a dog. The food would be his reward, his treat, for obeying. This enraged him even further and what little part of him Don had managed to convince that sitting down was a good idea went up in smoke. Then his stomach growled again, this time louder. Don felt a rather large tremor shake through his stomach. Cursing at his body for betraying him, Don sat down, telling his stomach that he was going to starve himself for the next week.

Dean watched, hoping Don was going to sit down. He really wanted the food and had a feeling that if Don disobeyed he would also be punished. Once Don was sitting each of the men placed a bowl in front of them. Dean got excited and when he saw the hot chicken noodle soup he scooted forward the best he could. Then he realized something. Their hands were behind their back, there was no spoon. How were they supposed to eat this? Dean looked over at Don and saw that he too had just realized what had happened. Dean looked back down at the soup and then up at the men. They wanted him to eat it out of the bowl like a dog. They actually thought they were dogs.

Don started fuming when he realized what was going on. They were degrading them down to animals, treating them like dogs. He had heard that it was essential for soldiers in combat and even FBI agents at times, to distance themselves from the enemy. Create them into different things. Don't think about them in terms of other human beings. If you didn't you couldn't do what was needed. This must be what they did here. It had to be how they seemingly got a whole town to agree to slavery, they really didn't think of Dean and him as humans. But that didn't mean that Don wasn't going to act like one. So, much to his stomach's protest he sat back up and scooted away from the bowl.

Dean was done being complacent. He had tried and it didn't work out. Nope, Sam was much better at it than him. He would just have to stick to what he did best. "I know muscles are your forte and all but it doesn't take a lot of brains to remember a spoon." To put the icing on the cake Dean fought through the pain and kicked bowl over.

Don looked over at him. "That was a bit dramatic."

Dean shrugged and looked over at the two men who had smirks on their face. Dean didn't like those smirks but he sure as hell wasn't going to eat out of bowl like a dog. He watched the two men each pull something out of a bag he hadn't previously noticed. Then his mind changed and all of a sudden eating out of the bowl didn't seem so bad. They were holding the collar. They had the same electric collar that had been used on him last time he had been with Nick. Dean couldn't help but feel a little fear creep into his nerves.

"Tom's friend Nick was nice enough to let us know what helped tame this dog last time." Hulk said to his pal, and then turned to smile at the animal before him.

Don looked over at Dean. While the young man wasn't panicking too much, Don could see the confidence melt away. What were those things in the men's hands? Don had never seen them before. But he didn't need to know what they were to know the objects weren't good. From what little he had learned about Dean he knew that the man didn't scare easy.

"Look, the dog is finally silent."

Dean glared at the Hulk but didn't say anything. He wanted to so bad but couldn't get the memory of the pain from last time out of his head. He started to breathe harder as the man came closer to him and it wasn't from the pain he was in now. He flinched when he felt the Hulk touch his neck and pulled his head back. Then his nose was bleeding. He closed his eyes and shifted his nose around. Not broken, thank God. Then he felt the leather collar come off. Before he could move the nylon one encircled his neck and he froze. His brain shut down. He closed his eyes and started to count.

Don watched Dean with a weary eye. He was shutting down. All of a sudden he was reminded of Charlie. Charlie would shut down when things became too tough, when he was scared. What could have happened to Dean that made him this scared? Even after the kidnapper stepped back Dean didn't move. He was staring at the ground with his eyes closed and hardly breathing. Don was so focused on what was going on with Dean that he didn't even notice the other man come up to him until he was three feet in front of him. "Whoa." Don said as he stood up, shakily but he managed to do it, and backed away.

Don saw the punch coming but with a chain around his neck and his hands behind his back he couldn't move fast enough. It caught him square in the stomach. He doubled over and fought to maintain his balance. The back of his neck was grabbed and he was thrown to the ground. Don managed to land on his side but made the mistake of choosing the side with his burnt arm was. He hissed as his shoulder lit up and he could feel the torn skin stretch even further. One man held a firm hand on his other shoulder to keep him down while the other took the leather collar off. Then he felt the new one circle around his neck. But this one was different, the material was nylon. In the front there were two metal prongs digging into his neck. The same feeling that had washed over him when he had first seen the branding iron started to come over him now. Now he knew why Dean was scared.

"This shed is surrounded by a wireless containment system. If you attempt to get within a foot of the walls you will get a small shock. The closer you come to the wall, the harder the shock."

Don stared at the two men as they walked out. While he had never owned a dog he had seen the invisible fences used on them. Don had always thought they were a bit cruel, now he was the one with the collar on. He was going to be the one electrocuted. He watched as the two men got to the door when one of them suddenly turned around. It was Dean's friend. Don thought he was coming back to him but instead the man walked to the side of the shed, grabbed the axe Don had been trying to reach earlier and walked out.

Don looked back over at Dean and could see he had his eyes open now. 'We're making progress,' Don thought to himself. "Dean." Don said in a normal voice but there was no movement. "Dean." He said a bit louder. "Dean!" This time he almost shouted. That got Dean's attention.

Dean jerked up when he heard Don call his name. But he felt a tremor of panic go through his body when the prongs shifted on his neck. He looked over at Don who was looking at him strangely. Dean could swear the man looked concerned.

"Are they telling the truth?" Don didn't have to ask if Dean had been through this before. He knew he had, the look on his face and his actions were enough, along with their captors' words.

Dean looked around the shed, half expecting the black tape that had surrounded his designated area before. There was none but that didn't mean they were lying. The walls were their boundaries. There was no need for the chains any longer. "Yeah."

"Perfect." Don muttered to himself, looking around at the walls.

**December 10****th**** at 7:45pm**

His arms were going to fall off. Sam was sure of it. They were sore and the raw, injured skin on his wrists stung like hell from the wind. His arms were lead weights and if it weren't for the rope they would drag him to the ground. His back was stiff and sore from the whips. The blood had dried on his back and the sweater. Every time he moved the dry, hard sweater would scrape against his back causing him to let out a little cry of pain. And hungry, God he was hungry. Flipping that bowl over hadn't been so smart. Now not only had he not eaten but he had gotten five more lashes. He should have just eaten it. He was supposed to be the easy going one; Dean was the belligerent one so why was he making life so hard for himself? And why was he here in the first place? They hadn't tied Charlie up and whipped him. From what he had seen Charlie was scared and looked a little sore when he had come by the second time but other than that he was alright. So why was he being treated like this? 'Nick must have said something to them,' was all Sam could think of.

Sam looked up to the sky, letting out a small prayer that Dean was close by, and safe. If the situation hadn't been what it was he would have noticed the stars. There were millions up there with no smog from city lights and cars to cover them up. The stars and moon were so bright that Sam could even see the house that was about forty feet away. It really was pretty out here, but in Sam's mind nothing positive would ever be associated with this place.

A small shiver traveled throughout his body as the wind picked up suddenly. He winced when he felt the skin on his back stretch. A small trickle of blood ran down his back when he felt a scab open up. Sam closed his eyes and gritted his teeth. He heard the back door of the house open up and looked towards the sound. Fear crept into his body; he had learned to associate the slam of the screen door with someone coming out to punish him. Sure enough it was Paul. As he got closer Sam could see he was carrying a bowl, food. His stomach went into spasms when Paul got close enough to where he could smell the food.

The battle started in his head. Was he going to eat it? Sam didn't want to; he would do anything but that. But Paul wasn't going to let him eat any other way and he needed food. The battle continued as Paul undid his hands. Sam tried to drop gracefully but there was no way he could have landed on his ass in a dignified manner. The bowl of food was three feet in front of him. It was oatmeal again and while Sam had never been a fan of the stuff it could have been steak and he wouldn't have known the difference. Sam looked up at Paul who was staring down at him. He couldn't do it. He couldn't bring himself to eat like a dog, to be broken in. But he was hungry, his stomach rumbled to remind him. Sam closed his eyes. He thought asking Paul to use the restroom would be the hardest thing he would ever have to do, Sam thought wrong.

"You have ten seconds to decide."

Sam opened his eyes and stared at the food. The wind picked up, irritating his back and making him want to curl in on himself to conserve his body heat. The steam came off the food and towards him. Sam bent down, resting his hands on the ground. He took his first bite. The food covered his face but when he swallowed his first bite Sam almost died. The warmth spread throughout his body and his stomach immediately quieted. In his mind he could see Paul smirking above him. Sam ate quickly, afraid that it was going to be taken away. He stopped half way through, a sick feeling washed over him and Sam wondered for a second if Paul would have put something in the food, then he realized it was him taking in exactly what he was doing. He was eating like a dog, he had given in. It had been less than two days and Sam had already given in. Sam stopped and backed up, he couldn't finish it. His stomach had stopped rumbling and his body was warm. He wasn't completely full but he wasn't hungry anymore.

"Good boy, what do you say?"

Sam felt the bile come up. He had to physically swallow the stuff back down his throat. He couldn't do this, he needed Dean. Why wasn't Dean here yet? Sam always complained about Dean watching out for him and protecting him like he was little kid but Sam would welcome it right now. Dean was his security blanket and he needed him. Sam saw Paul's hand go to his belt, the whip, when he didn't answer right away. "Thank you, thank you." Sam said quickly. He was sick with himself right now for giving in but he didn't want to get whipped again. He would do anything to avoid that.

But the whip came anyway and it was strong. It cracked against the shoulder that had originally been hit, back at Tom's. Sam lowered himself, grabbing at his shoulder and forgetting about his back, only for a moment. The ripped skin on his back stretched further as Sam brought his left arm around to grab his right shoulder. 'What the hell was that for?' Sam thought to himself. Then he remembered. Sam wasn't going to say it; he wasn't going to lose what little pride he had left. The hand with the whip rose a little. "Thank you master."

Sam's shoulders slumped and his back curved. How the hell did this happen? Sam used to consider himself a strong person. Why was he giving in so easy? He heard Paul roll the whip back up and clip in onto his belt. Then he felt himself hauled to his feet. He let out a small cry when Paul grabbed his shoulder that was injured but didn't fight it and didn't look at the man. His hands were brought up and tied. Then Paul walked away. When the screen door slammed shut he flinched.

**December 10****th ****at 8:50pm**

Paul was sitting on the couch, watching the Browns play the Ravens when the phone rang. He should have been preparing the stuff for the slaves tomorrow. Most of them had gotten the drywall up in the house and needed the paint but he had decided to make Mitch do it. Mitch was new and on the bottom of the totem pole. Besides, Paul had earned this little break. He was slightly surprised at how fast 242 had given up. Most gave up after the first whipping but some held on until the second or third day. Paul figured his judgment of the slave had been affected by Nick's stories. The man had said that 242 would be difficult to break, that the animal was a pistol. 'I guess Nick was wrong,' Paul said to himself.

"Hello." Paul answered the phone.

"Hey Paul, its Nick Colbert, Tom's friend. Is Rick there?"

"Nah, he went out of town, what can I do for ya?"

"Well I was wondering if you could help me out a bit? It would help you with one of your new slaves, the one I told you watch out for, as well."

"Well not that I need it but I'm listening." Paul was pretty sure the hard part with 242 was over but he had seen slaves bounce back after seemingly being broken in.

"I don't know if Tom told you but your slave has two brothers. I have the youngest one and Henry has the oldest one. Yours is a middle child. These boys are close to each other and that's where they draw their strength. I'm keeping the youngest but I was wondering if maybe I brought him by tomorrow you would let them see each other?"

"Now why in the hell would I do that?"

"We wouldn't leave them alone. I would simply walk by with Seeth. Seeth's going to try to get Sam's attention but I can handle him. If you've got a good hold on Sam then you can keep him silent. That will help me with Seeth. I've already got him thinking that the older one hates him, now Sam will help solidify that belief.

Paul thought about this for a moment. This good work to his advantage, it would definitely show the slave that he controlled his every move. "Alright, come on by tomorrow."

**December 10****th**** at 11:50pm**

Sam was jolted awake when he felt his body jerk. His legs had given out and he had dropped as far as his arms would allow. Sam would have let out a scream when he felt his shoulder pop out but his throat was dry and he didn't have the energy. It was the same arm that had been whipped. Sam let a tear escape, the only thing he could do to show his pain. Although he was cold his skin felt like it was burning. Inside he was freezing, his fingers were numb and he couldn't feel his toes but his skin was dripping with sweat. He could feel it running down his cheek and some of it dripping onto his lips. He licked his lips and screwed his face up when he tasted the salt in his sweat. Sam could feel every mark from the whip, each one trying to burn hotter than the others. Somewhere in the back of his mind it registered that his back was getting infected.

Slowly Sam got his feet back underneath him and even slower he stood up. But the minute he was fully standing his legs buckled again and he dropped about two feet. "Ahhhh." Sam moaned this time. His dislocated shoulder moved back and forth with his body until he stopped swinging. Sam tried two more times with the same result. Each time he felt his energy drain further and further. On the fourth time Sam only made it halfway up before he fell back down again. This time slipping into unconsciousness even before his body stopped moving.

**December 11****th**** at 6:30am**

Charlie was following Paul and two other men in the same sad formation as yesterday. He could see the house and Sam in the distance. His hopes started to rise a little as they got closer. Sam would look at him; give him the strength he needed to make that phone call. But when they within thirty feet of Sam worry started to creep up into his mind. Sam wasn't moving, and he didn't look like he was standing either. They got closer and Charlie could see Sam hanging by his arms. 'Why isn't he standing up?' Charlie asked himself. He knew not to stop or say anything but he couldn't help but slow down and look behind to see Sam's face. Charlie wasn't a doctor and knew almost nothing about medicine but he could see that Sam wasn't sleeping. He was unconscious.

'What did they do to you?' Charlie thought. He had seen the sweater on Sam; it was in worse shape than he had last seen it. Despite the chilly weather Sam was dripping with sweat and he was starting to look thin. Charlie imagined he was as well but Sam had been skinny to begin with and was looking almost emaciated. His hopes dwindled when they walked into the house but his determination skyrocketed. He was going to be the one to get them out of here, there was no other way. As much as Charlie didn't want to admit it, Don wasn't going to be able to find them. If he was going to come rescue them then he would have already been here. Charlie knew it was up to him. He felt scared having this responsibility; he had never been the one in charge of things like this. His dad and brother watched out for him, he knew he was sheltered growing up and still was. At the same time though Charlie started to feel empowered, bigger, he was going to accept the responsibility and carrying through, no matter what.

**I hope everyone had a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. I love visiting relatives but there is nothing like being in your own bed. **

**I want to apologize profusely for the amount of time it has taken me to get this chapter up. I had limited internet access when I was visiting relatives and therefore I wasn't able to get this chapter to my beta reader right away. My grandparents don't have internet, seriously, what type of people don't have internet these days?   
**

**So let me know what you thought. Once again I'm so so so sorry for the delay in getting this chapter up.**

**Many many thanks to my beta reader ALEO once again. **


	17. Chapter 17

**WARNING: Just wanted to warn everyone that the next few chapters will be a little rough on our boys. I probably should have put this at the beginning of the last chapter. This one includes child abuse description so readers beware. My intention is not to offend anyone so I am deeply sorry if I do. **

**December 11****th**** at 8:00am**

Paul paused in front of the unconscious animal and let out a sigh. He was going to have to cut his fun short; it would be his ass on the line if the slave got too hurt or died. But for now he would relish these last few minutes. He picked up the bucket and tossed the water onto 242. A small smirk appeared on his face when the slave gasped and struggled for his footing.

Blackness had pervaded his mind when he felt a sharp, stinging sensation start to pull him from his blissful, painless sleep. Water started to seep into his vision and he felt himself gasp for air when some water trickled down his throat. His thirst was so great that even just out of unconsciousness it burned when the droplets made their way down his throat. A chill shot down his spine when he felt the water soak through the shoddy remains of his sweater and through his jeans. His back burned with the slight movement that occurred when he raised his head. The next thing he noticed or rather missed were his arms. Sam realized that he couldn't feel his arms. His body felt like it was floating in the air. He struggled to get his legs underneath him and was surprised when he was able to stand up on the first try.

Sam's back had flared up due to the movement and the pain had forced him awake. He noticed Paul standing in front of him, an empty bucket at his feet.

"You're going to see Seeth in a few minutes."

'Seeth?' Sam thought for a second. Black dots had started to appear in front of him again. Then they disappeared. His brother, his little brother. 'Did Paul have him too?' Nick was bad enough but Sam knew that Nick wouldn't kill Seeth. Paul very well might. Summing up strength he didn't think he had Sam stood up to his full height and met eyes with Paul.

'There's that determination I was looking for,' Paul thought to himself. While the slave may have given in Paul knew that he wasn't quite broken in yet. The smart, hard to break slaves usually did give in a little, just to get food and use the restroom. They were smart and knew they would need their energy to continue fighting. 'That's fine,' Paul thought to himself. 'In a matter of minutes the animal will be mine completely.'

"Nick is going to bring him by and you are going to do what I say. Otherwise, Seeth gets the punishment. Ten lashes for every time you disobey me."

**December 11****th**** at 8:20am **

Seeth was definitely feeling better. His leg was throbbing but he could put some pressure on it. It took him a while to get places but he got there. His ribs were almost healed, if he accidentally bumped into something then they hurt but as long as he was careful he could get by. For the past day and a half he had mostly been ignored which was just fine for him. His dad had come in once and left soon after, leaving just a few punches behind. Seeth had ended up on the floor and couldn't get up for an hour or two but other than that he had walked away unscathed.

Of course, that meant he had had a full day by himself to let his mind wander. And it kept wandering back to the tape recording of Dean. Seeth wanted to believe it wasn't real but there was no doubt that that was Dean on the tape recorder. But maybe his dad had manipulated Dean? His father was always able to get people to do or say what he wanted. But how could he have gotten Dean to say those things? What could his dad have done to have made Dean completely forget about him? What could have been said where Dean would not only forget but completely disregard any mention of him?

These questions had been circulating through his head constantly. Despite his best efforts Seeth had maybe managed four hours of sleep. He had dreamt of when he was little, times where he had spilt the milk or knocked something over. The most vivid had been the time when he was four years old. He had a bad dream and had climbed into his dad's bed. It was when he started to sneak under the covers that something constricted around his throat. The next thing he knew he was flying across the room. His dad had thrown him so hard there had been a crack in the plaster. That was the first time his dad had ever beat him. He had apologized after that and the second one wasn't until three months later, the third one a month after that, and the fourth two weeks later. After that they started coming on a daily basis and hadn't stopped yet.

So when his dad came in and got him Seeth was almost glad for the distraction from his thoughts. He was surprised when he was led out of the room and told to get in his dad's truck. There were two other men in the truck along with his dad and they drove for about twenty minutes. Seeth didn't know where they were headed and found himself a little worried that they were leaving. If he left then he would be leaving Sam and Dean. Then he remembered Dean had disowned and abandoned him. But if he was worried maybe that was his mind's way of telling him there was no way Dean would do that. Besides, Sam would still care, right?

They pulled into a driveway about a mile long that ended at a large farmhouse. It looked like it was under construction. They drove around to the side of the house and Seeth was ushered out. This place looked just like Tom's and Seeth found himself wishing that they had left. While he didn't remember many details about this town and it's inhabitants he couldn't help but remember the pain that came along with it. His worst beatings had always happened here. Sometimes the slave drivers would get a hold of him and take out their frustration on him. His dad had only ever stepped after he'd passed out.

The one thing that he wasn't expecting was the first thing he saw when they rounded the corner to come around to the back of the house. It was Sam. His heart started racing first because it was his brother. Sam was here, Sam was still alive. Then Seeth noticed the tattered sweater, the strips hanging off the back. Seeth felt his back burn just from the thought of the whip. It had been used on him more times then he could remember. When they got closer he saw the water dripping off of him and the pain etched in every crease of his face. Sam's head was hung and blood was caked on his wrists and arms from the ropes. Seeth got tunnel vision when they got within fifteen feet of his brother. He couldn't hear or see anything but Sam. His eyes were open but he was just staring at the ground. "Sam." No answer. Not even a flinch. "Sam." A little louder but still no answer. "Sam!"

Sam heard that one and shut his eyes. He tried to make it so he looked as if he were annoyed. Sam couldn't do this to Seeth. It would kill Seeth; hurt him more than any physical wound ever could. His little brother had already been through so much mental and emotional abuse that Sam didn't know if he could take any more. But Sam couldn't stand by and let Seeth get punished for what he did, or didn't do. He just couldn't.

"Sam!"

The screened door opened and slammed shut. Sam flinched. Paul, Master, was here and watching. It was now or never, it had to be done. "Shut the hell up Seeth. Get the fuck out of here and leave us the hell alone." Sam may have given in, he may have peed on himself and ate out of the bowl like a dog but he had never been close to crying, really crying. But right now he wanted to bawl, just heave and gush. He had glared at Seeth and spoken with such malice that Sam hadn't believed himself capable of. He saw the betrayal register on Seeth's face for a moment before he looked away. Sam would never be able to look him in the eyes again. Hell, he could never look Dean in the eyes after that.

Seeth had taken a few steps toward his brother and was ready to take more when Sam spoke. For a moment it didn't even register. He froze. This hadn't been a tape recording, there was no manipulation. No one was standing next to Sam holding a gun to his head. Sam had said those words himself, chosen to say them. He didn't even move when he felt someone grab his arm and pull. Nothing registered, no sight or sound until he felt his head connect with the ground. He landed on his side and his ribs exploded from the impact. Seeth automatically curled up into a ball and started to retreat in his mind. He was a twelve year old boy again who had just seen his dad shoot the twelve week old puppy he had found on the side of the road. He was the four year old boy who had been put into a coma for wanting his father to comfort him after a nightmare. Nothing existed anymore. The past year or so never happened and Seeth started to rebuild those walls that had just been taken down a month before. When he felt the first kick come it meant nothing, it was just helped solidify the walls.

Sam heard Seeth being thrown to the ground. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Nick walk up to Seeth and glare. Then Nick brought back his foot and then slammed it home into Seeth's stomach. Sam wanted to shout, scream, look away, anything but just stand there. But Master was on the porch and the whip was unraveled. Master started to walk forward and Sam almost raised his head, he hadn't disobeyed. Why was Master coming towards them? Nick kicked Seeth again and this time his little brother let out a small whimper. But Sam kept his head down. Master had no reason to come down here, Sam hadn't done anything wrong. He did exactly what Master had told him to do. Sam started to shuffle his feet and his heart felt like it was ready to explode out of his chest. He tried to take slow breaths but his lungs were suddenly starved for air. Nick kicked Seeth again. Sam wanted to close his eyes but he wasn't allowed, Master had told him not to. He focused on a pebble at his feet but he could still see Seeth out of the corner of his eye. Seeth was shaking now. Master was there and he was talking to Nick. Then Nick was lifting Seeth up. Sam tried to tell himself that was a good thing but maybe they were just getting Seeth ready to whip. No, Seeth was being taken towards the house. Sam started to feel his heart beat slowly go down to normal, until Master came up.

"That was a good boy."

**December 11****th**** at 8:30am **

Seeth was shoved onto a chair in the unfinished living room. He bent over and clutched his ribs. His dad had kicked him hard. Nothing had broken but any healing that had taken place had just gone down the drain. He kept a wary eye upward, careful to make sure no one was coming towards him. The house was clearly under construction and Seeth could hear some people working in the various rooms around him. There was one man sitting in a chair about twenty feet in front of him. Every few minutes he would get up and walk around, looking into four of the rooms. His dad had gone back out and Seeth had seen him go into one of the smaller houses about two hundred yards away. He didn't dare look out the window towards Sam.

Any doubts that he had about the validity of what he had heard on the tape recorder were gone. His dad had been right, no one cared about him, no could ever like him. Dean and Sam had put on a good show but that's all that it had been, a show. Sam had finally said what he had wanted to say ever since Seeth had joined them. He just knew it. Seeth knew that Sam had been dying to say those things and now that Sam had nothing to lose he went ahead and said it. No one had forced Sam to say those things; there was no one there holding a gun to his head.

"Excuse me."

Seeth looked up when he heard a familiar voice. It was Charlie standing half way out of a room holding a paint brush.

Charlie had been painting for what seemed like forever. His arms were sore from yesterday and they felt like they were ready to fall off. But he had seen Sam this morning. He was unconscious and looked ready to ready to die, there was no way Charlie was going to do anything that might cause Sam to be hurt further. So he had been painting slowly and steadily for about two hours. Now he had run out of paint and needed more. He didn't know what the proper protocol was to ask for more supplies so he decided to just ask.

When he poked his head out to ask for more paint he was surprised to see Seeth sitting in a chair. Charlie met eyes with him for a moment before Seeth looked away. There was something in Seeth's eyes that didn't look right. Rather than something being there it was like there was nothing there. His eyes were blank, dead. Physically Seeth was doing better. He was sitting up on his own, he wasn't breathing too hard. He seemed to be in a little pain but other than that he looked to be okay.

"Get back to work!"

Charlie tore his gaze away from Seeth and looked over to the guard. "I…I need more paint." Charlie stammered, he had almost forgotten why he had come out here. The guard looked at him with a wary eye and glanced over at Seeth. Charlie shifted his feet and looked down nervously. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Seeth remain still.

"Here." Mitch grabbed a paint can from underneath the sink labeled 'Baby's Room' and handed it to the slave.

Charlie looked down at the can and read the permanent marker. He grabbed the can and walked into the room. 'These people have children?' Charlie had to swallow the bile that rose up in his mind. It never occurred to him that these vile criminals could have and raise kids in this type of environment. Did the kids know that their parents had slaves? Of course they did, who would carry on the work? The people here had to have a sophisticated system to keep all this hidden from the authorities and that had to have taken years to develop. Charlie turned back into the room and envisioned the baby blue paint on the walls with elephants and giraffes with a crib and rocking chair. Charlie shook his head at the demented image.

Then his mind drifted back to Seeth. When they had been in the U-Haul van Charlie had been amazed at the life in Seeth's eyes despite the situation and how hurt he was. He had seen how Seeth had looked at Sam and had seen the hope in his eyes when he saw Sam. What had happened to him?

**December 11****th**** at 10:00am**

Dean was lying down on the ground staring at the ceiling. He would have preferred not to touch the ground but he couldn't have remained standing and sitting was killing him. His whole side had swollen up from the injuries. So he had lain down, just thankful the dirt smelled like dirt and not other unpleasant things. Much to his surprise he was actually able to fall asleep. It had been shortly after the two large men had left that Dean had laid down, giving up on sitting. In fact he had given up on pretty much everything. When the electric collar had been put on he had shut down. The collar had brought back too many memories and none of them were good. Dean had never been the pessimist, he was always the glass-is-half-full kind of person. Then the collar had come, more than once it had nearly killed him. Then there was the association of Sam and Seeth being in danger. In his mind the collar represented the end.

This morning though the old Dean had returned. His usual sarcastic, hard-headed, and gung-ho self was back. He couldn't explain what had happened but it had happened. But all he knew was that the crying and pouting was over. 'I'm so glad Sam wasn't here last night.' Sam was the drama queen, not him. Now that the reaction had passed he couldn't believe how he had overreacted. Sam would have never let him live it down.

"Are you awake?"

Don's head jolted up. He had been nodding off to sleep for what seemed like forever. Don figured he had maybe gotten a total of an hour and a half of sleep. The collar was uncomfortable and heavy, the cuffs were tight around his wrists and pulling at his shoulders. He had ended up resting with his legs drawn up into his chest and his head resting on his knees. The position was uncomfortable and his back was killing him, 'God, I am getting old.'

"Yeah, how are you?" Don stretched his legs out and turned around to face Dean who was now sitting up. He had felt bad for Dean last night. Any attempt at conversation had been shot down and Don had received the signal loud and clear that Dean wanted to be left alone when the younger man had lain down and turned his back to him.

"We need to get out of here." Dean looked over at Don who was lifting his arms up as high as they would go. Dean smirked as he saw the older man screw up his face a little when the muscles cracked. Dean could hear them from where he was sitting; of course, it wasn't as if the room was that big. They were only sitting five feet from each other.

Don almost smiled at Dean until he saw the guy's grin. He had been trying to stretch his arms, lifting them up behind them. When they cracked he could practically hear the sarcasm in Dean's voice. "Don't."

Dean let a full smile break out on his face at that. "I'm hurt."

"Hmmph." Don smirked. At least he knew that Dean was back in true form. He had been worried about Dean for a while. He had never expected him to shut down like he did. "So what's your plan?"

"My tax dollars at work."

"You don't pay taxes."

Dean shrugged. "True. But hey, I don't exactly get paid for my civil service."

"Oh yeah, I forgot about the demon killing." Pure sarcasm.

Dean let out a small sigh. "Nobody likes a skeptic."

Don just shook his head. This conversation wasn't going to get them anywhere. The sarcasm and battle of wits was fun and a nice distraction from the situation but they couldn't afford to forget it for long. "So would you care to explain what had you freaked out about these collars so much?"

Dean was a little taken off guard by the change in subject but he rolled with it, just like he did everything else. "The fact that they're electric has nothing to do with it?"

Don should have counted on the attempt at defense. Dean wouldn't just come out and admit he had been scared. Don wouldn't have either. Maybe they were more alike than he thought. So Don just continued to stare at Dean, waiting for his right answer.

Dean looked down at his lap. Don knew that wasn't it. The man may have been a FBI agent but he wasn't a complete idiot, Don knew he wasn't telling the whole truth. "Last time I almost died." Why was he always better at sharing things with people that weren't his family?

Don looked away. There was more to it but he wouldn't push. It wasn't important anyway. Right now the only thing that mattered was getting out of this and finding Charlie. "Do you know what kind of electrical system this is?" Don knew very little about anything electrical but he could remember a few things his dad had told him when he was younger. Don had worked a few jobs with his father and could recall bits and pieces from the conversations with the electricians.

"I think it's like the one that people use for their dogs." Dean said. He could remember Mark referring him to a dog. Funny, he was in the same position again.

Don had seen them before. He remembered one time when they were knocking on a suspect's door and a dog had come charging from around the back. Megan and he had never run faster then when they were running from the German Shepherd. When they had reached his SUV Don had been surprised to see the dog standing about five feet from the edge of the yard. Cautiously Don and Megan had gotten back out. The Shepherd had started for them but when a small beep had come from somewhere the dog had stopped. Don stepped toward the yard again and the dog stepped forward again. This time Don was close enough to see the collar with a small plastic box. The beep came again and the dog backed up.

Don now looked around the small shed. The guy had said if they stepped within a foot of the walls they would get shocked. Don stood up and started to walk toward the wall with the door. He was about a foot and a half away from the wall when a small beep came from his collar, Don immediately backed up. He looked over at Dean who was watching him with a careful eye. The guys had known Dean had experienced the electric collar before. They had seen his reaction to the collars. It wouldn't be a stretch to think Dean wouldn't even challenge their remark about the containment system. Don had never owned a dog and had never used an electric fence so he didn't know if the beep meant the collar was on. He sighed, the collar was most likely on, he didn't need Charlie to tell him the chances of it being off. So Don stepped forward again, the beep went off. One more step and the beep got louder.

Dean couldn't believe Don was actually going to try. He knew Don didn't want to believe the collars were on, he had been the same once. He had thought that Mark had been joking. The man had not; Dean had pushed it and almost died.

The beeping was constant now and Don swallowed. He took another step and the beeping stopped. The next instant a jolt hit him. It started in his neck and went straight through his body, lighting all of his insides on fire. His hair stood on end and Don grimaced his face up in pain. Don's hands instinctively went up to his neck to pull the object that was causing pain away from him but the collar was too tight. After a few seconds Don's senses returned and he stepped backwards. As soon as he stepped back two steps the shocks discontinued.

"Do you even have to take a test to get in the FBI?"

Don gritted his teeth and clenched his fists to keep from hitting Dean. 'One, two, three, four… Dean is already hurt, I can not hurt him any further. I need him to help me, I can not hurt him. God I want to kill him!' He liked the quiet, scared, introverted Dean. At least it had been a break from the sarcasm. Don pushed his irritation with Dean away and thought some more about the electric fence. There had to be a way around it. "Have you ever tried jumping over it?" They wouldn't be able to jump anywhere now but if the door opened and they got the chance it would be worth a shot if there was chance it would succeed.

Dean was slightly disappointed, Don hadn't taken the bait. He was bored. While he didn't like getting beat up and he would prefer not to have to see the large men's ugly faces again he didn't like just sitting around not knowing what was going to happen to him. Last time they had been involved with Nick he had nearly gone mad those times Sam and him had been locked in the basement. "Yeah, it didn't end well. So seriously, how did you get into the FBI?"

Again, Don ignored the slight. "Well what the hell do you suggest?!"

Dean feigned a hurt look. Then he let out a sigh, Don was right they needed to use their heads but for the life of him he didn't see a way out of this. "The only chance we have is to try and take the two goons on next time they come in."

"Yeah well that hasn't worked the last few times we tried it."

It was thirty minutes later when Don and Dean heard the door open. It was the two giants and they were carrying food again. Dean watched carefully one plate was laid down just outside the door and the other was down in front of him. It was soup again, this time tomato, he really liked tomato soup. His stomach started to whine in protest at having to sit there and watch the steam rise. It roared out it's hungry demands and Dean sympathized. He was starving. His body had shivered violently throughout the night and Dean was sure that part of it had been from the lack of energy needed for his body to produce heat.

"Eat."

Don could hear Dean's stomach and his started to join in. They were both hungry. He watched Dean wince a little out of disappoint; Dean was going to reject the food.

"I know this is hard to remember so I won't hold it against you but the utensils are missing again. This room service just isn't up to my stan…"

"Aaaaahhhh!" The current surged through Don like a tidal wave. It started with the two prongs burning into his neck and then traveling throughout his whole being. His hands contracted behind him and his muscles tightened. His teeth clamped down, his upper and lower jaw gritted against each other and painfully shaved off the enamel. He fell forward, his forehead smacking against the ground before falling to his side. Don could feel each and every muscle tensing up, contracting on themselves. His heart rate had sped up dramatically and now it was skipping beats. His lungs were contracting. Breathing stopped altogether. His eyes clamped down as if the pain would go away if he couldn't see. Blood was pounding in his ears. He could distantly hear some screaming but the majority of his auditory reception was consumed with a loud thumping.

Then it was gone. His muscles loosened and his eyes opened. He drew in a long, shaky breath. His hands unclenched themselves and Don could feel his mouth loosening up. His neck was still burning though from the two prongs. They were still hot from the electricity.

"Son of a bitch!" Dean screamed. He hadn't expected that, he should have but he didn't. Don's chest was heaving from the exertion of breathing and Dean could practically feel the pain. Then Don arched again, screaming. Dean's handler was glaring at him. "Alright! Stop it! I'll eat it!" Dean shouted. He knew what they wanted. Don relaxed again when the button was released and let out a large breath. This time Dean saw he didn't open his eyes. He looked down at the food and closed his eyes as well. Dean couldn't believe he was about to flush his pride down the drain for a Fed. He bent an inch towards the food before he heard Don scream again.

"Fucking bastards! Stop it, I told you I would eat it."

Don couldn't breathe, his heartbeat was so erratic he felt like it was going to explode. He smelt something now; the smell was distinct, familiar. It was burning flesh. Then the surge stopped. Each time the electricity went away it felt like he was falling twenty feet. His muscles relaxed again and he concentrated on breathing and slowing his heart rate. He felt a wet sensation in the palm of his hand. Gingerly he touched his hand with the tip of his fingertip, he hissed through the stinging sensation. He had cut his hands with his fingernails.

Dean was glaring at the man next to him. 'What the hell was wrong with these people?' He was going to do what they told him. They didn't give him a chance.

"A slave asks his master before eating."

Don could hear some talking in the distance something about a slave, a master, eating? What was going on?

Dean would have killed the man if he could have. This town was pissing him off. Nick wasn't the only human on his list now. Dean clenched his cuffed fists and started to swear in his head. He saw Don barely breathing in the corner of his eye. There was nothing more he wanted right now then to just jump up and slam into the man in front of him. Then he saw the other guy raise his finger of the button. "Alright, alright." Dean couldn't believe he was about to do this. "Can I…please eat the soup?" Dean looked over at the man with the little black box, his finger got closer. "Wait, wait, what do you want?"

"How do you address your master?"

'You've got to be fucking kidding me?' Dean shouted to himself. This guy was absolutely insane if he expected Dean to bow down like that. Well, literally Dean was about too but he wasn't going to say it, he couldn't. The finger got closer to the button. "Master." Dean said before he could stop himself. Why the hell had he just said that? He glanced over at Don who was breathing easier but remained still. He gritted his teeth. "Can I please eat the soup?"

"Good dog."

Dean almost kicked the bowl over again. Then Dean changed his mind, he didn't want to kick the bowl, he was damn tempted to kick the guy where the sun don't shine. Dean could practically feel the steam coming out of his ears. He could feel the small scars in his palm from where he had dug his fingers there when he had been electrocuted. Right now his fists were clenched so tight that the scars were ready to open up again. He looked over at Don again, the guy had his eyes open now. Dean looked back down at the food. He had to do it, they would end up killing Don if he didn't. Even if they weren't going to kill him Dean couldn't let another person go through that pain. 'Not even a Fed.' Dean thought as he lowered his face into the soup.

At first he ate slowly, he was trying to keep his face relatively clean. The tomato soup was probably brought from the dollar store but it was good. Real good. The soup warmed his body as it surged into his stomach and he could feel his energy meter rising with every lick. But as the level went down and the bowl started to empty it was getting harder to get to the soup without getting his face covered in it. Dean gave up trying to be neat started to dive in. When his tongue hit the bottom of the bowl he stopped. He would not lick the bowl clean. As he brought his head up he rubbed his face on his shirt, trying to get as much off as possible. When he looked back up Don had managed to get back in a sitting position. Don gave him the slightest nod, Dean recognized it as a sign that he was okay. The thing about being electrocuted was that the effects didn't last too long, as long as the voltage wasn't been high.

Don had managed to steady his heart beat and he had been able to somewhat regulate his breathing. His neck was sore and the metal prongs on the collar were digging into the sensitive flesh on his neck. But other than that Don didn't think there were any lasting effects. He jumped slightly when a bowl was dropped in front of him. He looked up at the man that had been pushing the button and saw the nasty gleam in his eyes. When he looked over at Dean though there was a terrified look in his face, he was reverting back to last night. Dean was afraid that he was going to get electrocuted.

Don looked back down at the bowl. He wanted to eat but more so he wanted to protect Dean. 'Wait, what, protect Dean?!' Don couldn't believe what he had just thought. Don recognized these strange, absolutely unbelievable feelings he was having but couldn't fathom why the hell he was feeling them. He was starting to think of Dean as a little brother. Dean was replacing Charlie. Don liked being in control and the past week his life had been spiraling out of control. Was this way of him regaining control? He couldn't protect Charlie so he was going to do it with Dean? 'Now I'm starting to feel like Dr. Bradford.'

Whatever Don was feeling he would just have to live with it. He wasn't going to be responsible for Dean's nightmares coming to light. Don knew what the man wanted, he had heard Dean the second time around asking for the soup. So Don swallowed his pride thanked God that his team and Charlie weren't here to see him like this. "Master, can I please have some soup?"

"What a good dog. Go get it."

Don imitated Dean and bent down. The soup was warm and good tasting. It could have been expired and ten for a dollar but Don wasn't going to complain. Just like Dean Don tried to keep his face clean but didn't do as good of a job as Dean. He just couldn't get the idea of wanting to protect Dean out of his head. The man was a criminal. He was wanted for murder for God's sake. Torture, credit card fraud, breaking and entering. How could Don be feeling what he feels for Charlie towards a murderer? Was this something like Stockholm Syndrome? Don didn't think so. He was really worried about Dean. Maybe it had something to do with the doubts in his head about whether Dean really did those things he was accused of? He had thought that before, when he had first met Dean and now he was even more convinced Dean might be innocent. Dean was a pain in the ass and sarcastic as hell but somehow Don just didn't see him as a killer.

Don also attempted to wipe off his face before he sat all the way up. Dean was still in the same position, staring at the ground. Don could see his body was tense with anticipation. Don tried to get Dean's attention but he didn't have any luck.

"What good boys we have here. Get up, it's potty time."

**Hope that wasn't too bad. Thanks to my beta reader ALEO. I also want to thank all those who have been reviewing. The reviews mean so much and are really encouraging.**


	18. Chapter 18

**December 11****th**** at 10:45am**

The sun was finally showing through the clouds and the wind had died down. It was like the weather was in concert with Master and his goals. Now that he had given in and conceded to his owner's every whim Mother Nature was going to give him a break. Sam had managed to remain standing since the ordeal with Seeth but he felt like just letting go, maybe try to hang himself. If he had been in Seeth's place Sam would have preferred physical pain over Dean or Seeth yelling such things at him. Sam couldn't imagine life ever going back to what it had been before all this happened. It had taken months for Seeth to come out of the dark, to trust them and enjoy himself and now all that was torn away by just a few words. Not that Sam would ever get out of here, he was trapped. They owned him.

Sam jumped when he heard the screen door open and close. He knew his master was coming for him. Not wanting to see what he was going to use to humiliate him this time Sam kept his head down. The man's feet appeared in his line of sight. Then his hands were being untied. Sam was confused, what was going on? He heard a chain and felt an added weight on his neck suddenly. Sam looked up and met his Master's eyes.

"Come."

Sam stumbled after his master. It was a miracle he got his legs to work right. They were headed toward the house that Charlie and the other slaves had been led into. That meant warmth at least, protection from the wind and chilly air at night. They walked up the wooden steps and into the house. Sam jumped a little again when he heard the screen door close behind them. The house was under construction and big, really big. The flooring wasn't finished and the kitchen lacked appliances. There was an area, probably for a living room, off to the right and Sam saw Seeth sitting in a chair. His brother didn't even look up, eyes remaining glued to the floor. Sam wanted to shout out so badly, wanted to rush over there and wrap him up in a big hug. Winchester men didn't hug. But he wasn't a Winchester anymore, he was a slave. Winchester men would have never broken down like he did; they would have never shown the weakness he did.

So Sam walked by silently, trying to convey his heartfelt apologies and strength to Seeth through his eyes and just regular old mind will power but it had always been Dean and him that shared that special gift. Seeth was their brother, he was an essential part of their trio but Sam and Dean had been through much more together. They had a twenty four year relationship advantage whereas they had only known Seeth for a year. Seeth still needed the hand signals when they went out on hunts whereas Dean and him just had to look at one another. One glance and their minds connected. But not Seeth, it didn't work when they hunted, it wouldn't work now.

Another door opened and Sam followed his master down the stairs. For a moment he thought about resisting. Last time he had been led into a basement things didn't turn out so well. It's how he ended up in this mess to begin with. But resisting would only get himself punished, or worse, Seeth punished. Sam wasn't going to take a chance with his little brother still in the house, close enough for his master to get his hands on him.

This basement was different than the last one though. The floors were concrete, not dirt, for which Sam was thankful. And the room didn't smell. There was a slight hint of bleach but nothing else. No urine or dead and rotting corpses stinking up the place. The cells were about the same size but here there was sufficient lighting. Each wall was lined with five cells with a ten foot separation between the two sides. At the far other end there was a door. The basement looked new; there weren't any blood stains or fingernails from previous occupants trying to dig their way out or from scratching the walls and floors while being tortured.

"Do you have to use the restroom?"

"Yes, Master. Can I please use the restroom?" Sam had only answered a few questions and each one had brought about punishment. But he had learned the proper etiquette and was determined not to get punished or have anyone else punished in his place. To his surprise the leash was unhooked and his master pointed towards the door.

"There are clothes in there to change into, leave the dirty ones in there. Come out within five minutes."

"Thank you Master." Sam walked toward the door, hoping this wasn't some cruel trick. When he opened the door he was thankful to see a bathroom indeed. There were clothes on the counter, sweat pants and a t-shirt. It was hard to maintain his balance while using the bathroom but that was nothing compared to trying to take off his sweater. Sam winced but managed to choke back a cry of pain when he lifted his arms. But when he tried to pull the sweater up with them he nearly fell down from the pain. The sweater had become stuck to his body from the dried blood. When he pulled up the material it tugged at his wounds. Sam let out a small cry and lowered his arms. He couldn't do this. There was no way. But Master said he had to. He had to change or he would get punished. Deciding that doing it quickly was probably the best Sam thrust his arms into the air, pulling the sweater with them.

This time he let out a full scream and collapsed the floor. He could feel fresh blood coming from his wounds and saw it dripping on the floor, pooling around him. Was he going to get in trouble for that? Sam estimated he let himself sit on the floor for two minutes before he tried to move. But he had to get up. He was only allowed to be in here for five minutes. So he painstakingly stood up, using the counter for support. Sam thought his knuckles were going to break from him gripping the countertop so hard. Using one hand to keep himself standing he used the other to pull down the sweats he had been given earlier. Slowly Sam pulled the new ones up, the hardest part was bending over and stretching the skin on his back.

By the time he was finished with dressing himself Sam was ready to pass out. He didn't have the energy to walk back out and face his master. But unless he wanted to get punished he would have too. The bathroom was small enough that Sam could go straight from gripping the counter to leaning against the wall. The door squeaked with the pressure he put on the handle, trying to steady himself. Master was waiting about five feet from the door, in front of an opened cell. Sam took the hint and walked in. The door clanged behind him. Two minutes hadn't passed from when Master had left before Sam was unconscious on the floor.

**December 11****th**** at 11:15am**

The phone taunted Charlie. It sat there, his ticket to freedom. Rescue was only ten feet away but reaching the phone would be impossible. The guard sat in a chair, just to the right of the phone. He looked to be playing on a hand held video game system, it looked like a PSP to Charlie but he couldn't be sure. The man was distracted most definitely but he wasn't in a coma and that's what Charlie needed if he was going to make a phone call with the guy sitting three feet away. He had to convince Tina to help him, or someone. There had to be at least one other slave who wanted to escape, who hadn't given up hope.

Charlie looked back to the wall he was painting and sighed. He was just now half way through the second coat of primer. These people may be slave owners and the scum of the earth but they were meticulous. Just as he began to paint again he heard someone stop outside the door. It was Paul. Charlie initially glanced down to the ground, but immediately looked back up, meeting the man's eyes. He wasn't going to play the weak one anymore.

Paul almost allowed the confusion to show on his face. Something was changing in this slave. He had looked at 241 as weak and easy to break. In fact he had never given a second thought to putting the slave in with the others right away. But something was changing now. Paul could sense a little bit of resistance coming out in 241. 'This next task should help squash that.'

"Follow."

Charlie was surprised but did as he was told. He saw Seeth still sitting in the same spot but this time he didn't look up. Charlie's heart went out to the boy. Paul opened a door and Charlie went down first. He was immediately comforted by the fact that there was no horrid smell waiting for him down in the basement. But when he saw Sam lying face down in one of the cells he started to panic. Paul didn't exactly slam the door but he hadn't been quiet either and Charlie became even more worried when Sam didn't move. Sam had on new clothes; Charlie noticed there were no whip marks or tears in the t-shirt. Despite that Charlie could still see blood spots on Sam and even a drop or two on the floor.

"Clean the mess in the bathroom, the supplies are right there. I will be back down in ten minutes to check on you. Don't talk to the slave in the cage."

'Talk to him? He's unconscious. I hope he's knocked out and not dead.' Charlie thought as Paul walked back up the stairs. Once he heard the door close Charlie walked over to the edge of the cage and was relieved to see Sam was still breathing. He forced himself to look away; he had a job to get done. As he walked to the bathroom he tried to look for a camera or a listening device. If Paul didn't want him talking to Sam he had to have someway to listen in. Charlie didn't see any but knew that didn't mean there weren't any there.

True to his word there was a mop, a bucket, along with bleach and some other bath and tile cleaning supplies. Charlie opened the door to the bathroom hesitantly and almost threw up when he saw what was in there. Blood, lots of it. It was already starting to dry on the tiles. It had to be from Sam, no one else was down here. Charlie stepped out and hunched over, trying to swallow down the meager breakfast he had been given. When he turned back he was armed with the bleach and mop.

What were they doing to Sam? And why? Sam had shown no more of a threat then he had, or at least so Charlie thought. What made him so lucky that he didn't have to be 'broken in'? Charlie knew he should consider himself lucky but he was just plain confused. Nothing about this place made sense. Probabilistically someone had to have escaped from here. No place, not even a high security prison was impossible to get out of. He didn't see how in modern day USA that no one had found out about this place. According to Seeth this had been going on for a while. It was all so unbelievable.

Charlie had let the bleach and floor cleaner sit for five minutes and he knew it was supposed to soak for a longer period of time but he wanted to have made some progress by the time Paul came back down again. He took a big sponge from the cleaning bucket and started to scrub. His arms were tired and protesting but he just scrubbed harder. Before he could blink the sponge slipped out from underneath him and he fell into the puddle of blood. Charlie scrambled up and quickly crawled the two feet to the toilet where he promptly threw up. The toast he had been given came up first. By the third heave he was emptying the water from his system. Soon after that he was dry retching.

The crime scene where Don had been grazed by a bullet in the arm several years back suddenly appeared before his mind's eye. The dead FBI agent's blood splattered on the gray marble glistening in the afternoon sun, the injured pedestrians sitting around while medics tended to them, Terry saying something, it was all so clear. He had been sick for a few days afterwards. The doctor had said it was the stress, the shock.

Then reality came back and Charlie was sitting on the bathroom floor with his head leaning over the toilet. The recent events were all catching up to him now. Charlie felt the urge to be sick again and closed his eyes to try and control his body. When he was sure he was done he stood up, using the back of the toilet to steady himself. He flushed the disgusting bile and relished the cold water from the sink hitting his face. Charlie did his best to sip some water from his hand but he couldn't get the nasty aftertaste of puke from his mouth. Figuring Paul would be down here any second Charlie got back to work.

**December 11****th**** at 11:23am**

"Hey Paul," Nick shouted as he came down the stairs.

Paul took his hand off the door knob to the basement and turned around to greet Nick. "Yeah?"

"I know that you have already helped me out but I just got a call from Tom and he's got some sellers and buyers coming in this week and doesn't have room for me any more. I don't want to take off just yet so I was wondering if you could get a hold of Rick and see if it's possible I stay here for a few days. I could give you Seeth to help with the construction and such." Nick was hoping to stay here until he heard from Mark Finn. The man had a house being built where all of the people in their little circle of hunters could stay. They hunted demons and such just like any other hunter but they also took opportunities for themselves when they wanted too. No need to have all that selfless sacrifice. Reward yourself, that was their thinking. So as not to draw any suspicion with the construction workers Mark was the only one overseeing the project, the rest of them were staying away for now trying to gather as much money and resources as possible.

"Go ahead, Rick won't mind, you can use the last house on the left, it has an empty guest room. Seeth can either stay with you or with the slaves. It doesn't matter to me." Rick was the owner of the house, land and slaves, basically everything but Paul was in charge right now. He didn't mind Nick staying and Seeth didn't look like he would move the entire time, let alone give him trouble or any headache.

"Great. Thanks a lot. Hey, we're going to head over to Henry's real quick and we'll be back. I'll buy some steaks if you want and grill them. A little thank-you present."

"Sure, I've got eleven men here that would be happy for you to grill up some steaks."

**December 11****th**** at 12:00pm**

"Are you alright?"

Don looked over at Dean; this was the third time Dean had asked that. "Yeah, I'll live."

Dean just looked down at his own hands, they had been left un-cuffed after they used the restroom. Both Don and he had immediately tried tacking off the collar but there was a small padlock in the back, holding it on. Then Don had suggested they try to slip something between the prongs and their neck. That hadn't worked, the collar was on to tight. They couldn't even get a pinky in between. Dean figured they had to be on that tight to keep the collar from moving around and to keep the prongs touching their skin.

It wasn't often that Dean apologized for his actions, never look back, never regret, it was a motto that had served him well during his life. But when Don had been electrocuted in front of him he couldn't help but think of Sam and Seeth. The whole time he had been held by Mark Finn Dean had prayed that Sam wouldn't have to experience what he was going through. When they had finally escaped Dean thanked whatever high authority was up there that Sam never had to experience the collar and that Seeth hadn't either, at least on his watch. But Don now had and it was because of him. When Dean had the run in with the reaper he thought nothing could feel worse. He had been responsible for a man's death, now he was responsible for a man's torture.

"Hello boys."

Don watched as Dean's friend walked through the door, followed by another man. He recognized the second man, it was Nick Colbert. One glance at Dean and the expression on his face and Don was worried. This couldn't end well.

"You son of a bitch." The anger exploded within him and Dean jumped up. He had only made it half way to Nick before he dropped to his hands and knees. The electricity surged through him and lit every nerve on fire. His back arched as his body tried to fold in on itself. Breathing started to become more difficult and his heart rate started to speed up. Then it was over. Dean collapsed on the ground, tears in his eyes more from the frustration and anger at Nick then the shock.

Don had started to get up as well when he saw Dean go down. But a strong hand on his shoulder stopped him. It was one of the giants. In the man's other hand was a little black box, it didn't take a genius to figure out whose collar that black box controlled.

Nick smiled when he pressed the button and laughed when Dean dropped like a sack of potatoes. He had made a promise to Henry though; he wouldn't permanently damage either of the slaves. That's why the two miniature bulls were there, too make sure he didn't get out of hand. As Dean lay shaking on the ground Nick walked over to him and started to circle. "Revenge is sweet." Nick bent down and whispered in Dean's ear. "It's about to get sweeter." Then he stood up, "Seeth get your ass in here."

Dean had managed to get back on his hands and knees before Nick whispered in his ear. 'What the hell did that mean?' Dean didn't want to know. Then he heard Nick call Seeth in. Dean quickly came up into a seated position, any pain forgotten. The rush of emotions he felt when he saw Seeth could never be explained. It was a mixture of happiness and relief tempered with concern.

Seeth had been waiting just outside the door, like his dad had said. He knew they were going to see Dean, he had heard his father talking with Paul. But why? Seeth didn't want to see him, he didn't want to see either of his brothers. 'No, they're not my brothers, not anymore.' He was angry at them, furious. Betrayal is what Seeth felt the most though. He had never put his trust in anyone but himself. It was too dangerous. And then, after 19 years he had finally decided to take a chance. Not anymore, he had learned his lesson.

"Seeth." He looked to be okay. Dean could see the bandage around his leg. 'Must be the gunshot I heard over the phone.' Or at least he hoped. A shot to the leg wasn't as serious when you considered other places on the body that could be hit.

Seeth heard Dean but didn't listen. Dean didn't care about him. No one did.

"Now Dean, I think Seeth here wants to say something to you. I may never have been nominated for father of the year but at least Seeth knew what he was going to get when he came to me. With you though he only thought he knew. Isn't that right Seeth?"

Seeth didn't respond out loud, he remained standing motionless. 'If I just keep my eyes down they won't look at me. I won't have to look in my lying brother's eyes. I won't have to hear Sam's voice screaming at me or Dean's uncaring, forgetful questions.'

"What the hell are you talking about?" This time Dean looked over at Seeth with more than an eye for injuries. Seeth was hurt but not in the physical sense. Dean hadn't seen that look in his brother's eyes for a long time. In fact the only time he could ever remember seeing that look was when he went off on Sam. It had been about two weeks after Seeth had joined them that he and Sam had gotten into a huge fight. Dean had raised his hand to make a point, not to hit Sam, but when he looked at Sam he could see his attention focused elsewhere. Dean had followed Sam's gaze to Seeth who was sitting on the bed. This look, right now, was the one that Seeth had had in his eyes back then.

"I think you know Dean. I said lying could get you hurt, pretending hurts others." Nick pulled the tape recorder from his back pocket and hit play.

"_Where is Sam?"_

"_What about Seeth?"_

"_Where the hell is Sam?!"_

"You fucking liar!" Dean heard it but he didn't comprehend it. He hadn't said those things, at least not in that context. Nick had doctored the tape. He had to have.

"_Where is Sam?"_

"_What about Seeth?"_

"_Where the hell is Sam?!"_

"You think you did Seeth a favor by taking him in. Then you do this and Sam, Sam just told him to go to hell. You boys are great brothers."

Dean wanted to get up and strangle Nick. With the rage and adrenaline pumping through him right now he just may well be able to but the threat of the collar held him back. "You doctored it. You recorded the conversation and changed the words around. Seeth!"

"Seeth." This time Nick turned his back on Dean and faced Seeth, blocking the brothers from each other's view. "Do it." He pressed the black box into Seeth's hand. Nick knew that Seeth was confused and when he was confused he was mad. The only time Seeth had raised a hand at him was after a month's abstinence of beatings. Seeth had been about fifteen and Nick had been kind to him for a while. He had been in a good mood and relatively busy, too preoccupied to carry out his "duties" as a father and too lazy too care to do them. When he had smacked Seeth for the first time after a month or so Seeth had been so confused, Nick could see it in his face. Seeth liked to know what was going on, he liked consistency. Yes, he may not win any father of the year awards but he knew his son.

Seeth stared at the black box in his hand, he was so mad at Dean right now. He had been betrayed, by everyone he knew. There was no one he could count on. Never had he felt so lost. He had known abuse his whole life but it had always been there. He knew what to expect. There was no false hope.

"Seeth!" Dean couldn't see him, Nick was blocking him from his sight but he needed to talk to him. Seeth had to understand he didn't say it. Then Nick moved and he saw who was holding the black box. It was just like the first time Nick had told Seeth to electrocute him. Except this time Seeth knew who he was, had a history with him, had cared for him, hopefully. "Seeth he's lying to you, you can't beli…" The pain surged through him again, this time stronger. He doubled over on himself and let out a hoarse scream. His lungs were burning and constricting. Tears came to his eyes as his hands curled into little balls. He couldn't think, nothing was happening but the electrocution. A buzzing sound invaded his ears and his vision went black. He wasn't unconscious because he could still feel the pain. There was no sensation of him touching anything. It was like he was floating in mid air, lightning hitting him from within. He felt his heart start to constrict and his fists started to shake. Then, just as suddenly as it had started it stopped. All at once his body loosened, he could hear Don screaming and he could see and feel the dirt beneath him.

Last time Seeth had shocked Dean it had been a result of Dean's inability to keep his mouth shut. Seeth hadn't known them then other than that they were his brothers. Brothers that hadn't had to live through what he had to. Dean had been egging him on which he later found out was to try and get him talking. Seeth had remembered feeling good about causing Dean pain whilst doing it until he realized who he was turning into. It was what his father had wanted. This time the only thing he felt was confused. More confusion. There was no satisfaction in doing this but there weren't any guilty feelings either. He was just there. There weren't any thoughts beyond his own basic survival and what he needed to do in order to not get hurt again, by anyone.

"Seeth. Please." This time Dean's voice didn't rise above a whisper. His throat was killing him from the muscle constriction and didn't think he could talk normally if he tried. He didn't even lift his head off the ground. Dean couldn't bear to see the look in Seeth's eyes. He wouldn't be able to stand it if there was hate in there.

Nick took the box from Seeth and motioned for the other man to follow. He took Seeth by the shoulder and guided him out of the room. They were followed by the other two men, one of whom closed the door behind them. That was all Nick needed done. His goal had been accomplished; show Seeth that he was in charge, and show Seeth that he did in fact hate Dean and Sam. And Henry had benefited, Dean would certainly be a little less…well, Dean-like after being electrocuted by his own brother.

Don had been watching carefully ever since the three men had entered the room. He recognized Seeth from before when he had seen him in the bedroom briefly. Seeth wasn't there mentally, Don could see it in his eyes. It was a classic abuse case. Don had dealt with a few abused children; had come across them when dealing with drug lords, murderers, gang-bangers, and other low-lifes. Almost always the kid would be shut down, having retreated into their own mind. He had watched Megan try to get information from such kids before; she was almost never able to. The kids were there physically but their minds were gone. Don could see it in Seeth's eyes. He could see it the way he acted around Nick. He didn't need to have seen what he had before to know that Seeth had undergone a long history of mental and physical abuse.

But even with his uneducated psych evaluation he hadn't been prepared for Seeth to hit the button. He had seen Nick press it into his hands but Don didn't believe Seeth would actually go through with it. He shouted for Dean and attempted to get up again but this time was shoved down so hard he landed on his back. By the time he got up again the electrocution had stopped and the three unwelcome visitors were living. Don waited until the door was closed before rushing over to Dean.

"Come on, just breathe."

**December 11****th**** at 7:00pm **

Charlie heard the shout from outside to start cleaning up and did just that, happily. It had taken him an hour to clean up the mess downstairs. That's how he would refer to it, 'the mess.' After that Paul had brought him back upstairs and back to the room he had been painting. On the way he had managed to sneak a peek into each of the other rooms and had seen the other three people painting as well. Tina had her back turned to him and didn't even bother looking around when Paul had said something to the man watching them. He couldn't imagine living like this and hoped that it would be over soon, that he could give Tina back her life. He hoped that he would have the courage to do what was needed.

The fact that Seeth was missing when he had come back up hadn't been lost on him. He had heard someone say something about going to see a Henry. Then he had heard the door open and shut. Charlie assumed that's when Seeth had left. But when he walked out to wash his paint brushes off Seeth was back, this time sitting in the corner of the room, not in a chair. He caught his eye once again and saw something different this time. Charlie didn't know what it was but something was different about him now, his expression or something. All of a sudden he was reminded of Jessica, his childhood friend who had been a victim of abuse. Not able to help himself Charlie glanced down at the phone only two feet away.

'Idiot.' Seeth had noticed Charlie walk out of the room and watched him clean the paint roller. He hadn't looked away when Charlie had looked towards him but couldn't help but laugh inwardly when he saw Charlie look at the phone. Only a fool would think they could get out of here. Charlie wanted to call his FBI brother to come save the day. Little did he know his big protector was sitting in a shed on the next farm down the road. That's the way it always worked, big brothers let you down. You couldn't count on them, could you.

Dean's yelling hadn't reached his ears but he could have heard his brother's whisper a thousand miles away. Seeth had never heard Dean sound like that. It had thrown him for a loop actually. He hadn't even been able to fully process it until he was in the van heading back to Rick's. His oldest brother was always the sarcastic, loud, confident one. The voice that he had heard then had been weak and pleading. Dean had said that Nick had doctored the tape. Could he do that? Of course he could. Seeth had done it himself once. Seeth wouldn't put it past Nick to do it either. But what about Sam? Sam had very plainly shown him how he felt. There had been no one around to make him say what he had said. But then he remembered that Rick's slave driver had been on the steps. Maybe he had talked to Sam earlier. But what did he threaten Sam with? The Sam he knew, or thought he knew, wouldn't have done that for anything. The only weakness he had ever seen in Dean or Sam had been each other. Had the slave driver threatened Sam with Dean?

Seeth never moved just continued to stare at Charlie, watching the man work but it all meant nothing. It was like he was a spectator in his own body, his thoughts were running in circles causing ever more confusion. He hated confusion.

**Okay everyone, here's Chapter 18. Hope you enjoy. Big thanks to ALEO again. I'm trying to squeeze as many betad chapters out of her as possible before she goes off line for a week or so. I hope you guys enjoy and remember to let me know what you think.**


	19. Chapter 19

**December 11****th**** at 9:25pm**

The beginning of conscious began to pull at the edges of his mind. At first Sam resisted, he didn't want to wake up just to be back outside cold, hungry, and strung up by his arms. But no matter what he did Sam couldn't maintain his hold on the darkness. When he finally gave up the struggle and let the black abyss slip away Sam was surprised to feel ground underneath him but not dirt, something cool and hard. Sam opened his eyes and saw the dull gray tinge typical of concrete. It was bright but not from natural sun light, there were walls and bars. 'Why are there bars?' Then Sam remembered; shouting at Seeth, Seeth sitting in a chair refusing to look at him, the long trek down to the basement, the struggle to get changed, and then walking into the cell. From there everything went black. He must have passed out.

Sam wondered briefly whether he should try to sit up or not but decided against it. While the floor was hard it was more comfortable then standing all day with your arms tied above your head. He did try to roll over on his back but immediately regretted it. Quickly he went back onto his stomach as the whip marks flared up from the movement. Sam had rolled away from his earlier position and could see there had been a little blood where he had lain. His back didn't feel wet now and the t-shirt was clinging to it like the sweater had. The blood must have been from when he had changed, when he had ripped the already abused skin apart.

He couldn't help but notice how quiet and empty the room was. Sam kind of liked it. It didn't feel as if someone was watching him constantly. The more comfortable position he was in right now sort of helped. The quietness didn't last long though, his stomach started to growl. Sam felt hunger pains run through his body and his throat suddenly felt very dry. Sam knew he hadn't eaten all day, if it was still the same day. This basement didn't even have the small window that Tom's place had had. And he couldn't remember the last time he had drank something.

As the minutes passed by and he got use to hearing his belly complain he started to think about other things. Namely Dean and Seeth. Where was Dean? Why hadn't he come yet? Certainly he had contacted Bobby for help. Had Dean come for him and gotten caught himself? Dean wouldn't be that stupid would he? Yeah, he would. And Seeth, Sam was worried about him most of all. He knew Seeth was in danger and he couldn't be the strongest after what he had just put him through. Only recently had Sam felt like Dean and he had really gained Seeth's trust. It had taken a long time but no one could blame Seeth for holding back and not being trusting. Living like Seeth had for his whole life couldn't have been easy and he had to have a suspicion about everyone to survive. As far as Sam knew Seeth had never heard a kind word before Dean and him.

Sam was just thinking that physical punishment might have been better for Seeth than his hateful words when he heard the door open. He knew that it was most likely Master so he tried desperately to scoot into a sitting position. He managed to get half way through before Master was opening his cage. There were two bowls this time. One was oatmeal, Sam could smell it. His stomach renewed it's grumbling. When the second bowl was set down he saw that there was water in it. A small part of Sam became disgusted at the thought of drinking out of a bowl of water like a dog. But Sam was well aware that he should have been more than just a little angry.

"Master can I eat and drink?"

Sam didn't need to be told. He knew what was expected and he was willing to do it for food and water. Besides the whip was hanging proudly, taunting him, at his master's belt.

"Yes, good boy."

**December 12****th**** at 9:45am **

There was a muffled beeping sound. Then it went away. A few seconds later it was back. Don looked around but the smoke alarm wasn't going off. Did Charlie finally get around to buying that carbon monoxide detector? The beeping stopped again , then started. This was getting annoying. And his dad's and Charlie's voices were starting to fade. The beeping was louder this time. Now all he could see was blackness. The beeping was even louder. Don groaned inwardly when he realized Charlie and his dad had just been a dream. Then what was that beeping he kept hearing?

Don slowly opened his eyes, afraid to see what was happening. He sat up and looked around. Dean was walking around the shed. He was staying about a foot away from the walls. 'Well that explains the beeping.'

"What the hell are you doing?" Don asked, rubbing his eyes and standing up. He was starting to feel dizzy from Dean circling around him. The man was definitely on a mission. In just the minute or so Don had been awake Dean had made five laps.

"Seeing if there's a weakness."

"What?" Don was still trying to get the foggy remnants of sleep out of his mind. He also stopped following Dean around the room with his eyes, his early morning brain couldn't function just quite right yet.

"Sometimes there are weaknesses in the connection or the wire. A dog had one of these on when Sam and I visited its house. The dog was able to get out of the yard without being shocked. When the lady apologized she said something about a disrupted signal. Of course, her invisible fence was wireless, we don't know if this is. At the very least I'll wear out the battery in the collar so it should be dead sometime next week."

Okay, his mind was starting to catch up. "Dean stop."

"What?" Dean didn't pause.

"Stop."

This time Dean stopped. "Why?"

"Because you're giving me a headache."

Dean started walking again.

"And because Seeth will be alright."

Dean stopped. He looked down at the ground, refusing to look up at Don.

Don knew that was Dean's main motivation. After Seeth had left Dean had lain still for only a few seconds, then Don could feel the protective brother mode switch on. Dean had spent the majority of the night pacing back and forth. He had been worried that Dean would shut down again but it didn't happen. While Don didn't know Seeth, didn't know the circumstances or the brother's relationship he hadn't dared predict what Seeth's behavior would do to Dean. Don couldn't imagine how he would react if Charlie had done that. But Charlie would never do it. Don was certain of that and he knew he could never to do it to Charlie.

But Seeth was different. Don didn't need Megan to tell him that the kid was damaged emotionally and mentally. If he had to guess he would say that Seeth had been abused if not his whole life then a hell of a long time. The way Seeth held himself screamed submissiveness and fear. Living through that would definitely produce some trust issues. Don had gathered from the tape that Nick had set up that earlier argument between Dean and him at Tom's house specifically so he could record, manipulate, and use Dean's words against him to disrupt any relationship between the three Winchesters.

"I saw him before he left, I think he believed you."

"Hmph." Dean shook his head. "You don't know Seeth. It took him months before he could trust me and Sam. He's only been with us for about a year. You know he wouldn't even sleep in the same room with us at first; he slept out in the car or in his own room. He would never sleep around us, even if we were driving for two or three days. He was just starting to let his guard down. Nick had completely screwed him up. Now he's doing it again."

Don looked down. He didn't know how Dean felt and couldn't imagine. While Dean had only known Seeth for a year Don could tell Dean cared about him, just like he did Sam. And Don could only begin to imagine how he would feel if someone had done to Charlie what they had done to Seeth. They wouldn't be alive Don knew that.

"You'd be surprised at how people can bounce back, at how they can trust once they're shown how."

**December 12****th**** at 12:15pm **

_**(7 months ago in Eggertsville, Indiana**_

_Seeth had stormed out of the motel room. He didn't need them; he could make it on his own. Even though he had been living with his father for his whole life he had fended for himself. No one had ever tucked him in at night or made him peanut butter sandwiches. Seeth didn't need anyone to take care of him. _

_As Seeth passed by the Impala he was tempted to smash a window and hot wire it but he refrained himself. This wasn't the first time he had walked out on Dean and Sam. In fact it was the third. For the most part they all got along pretty well. He got along a lot better with Sam rather than Dean. Sam said it was because they were both too damn stubborn for their own good. Seeth didn't believe that, Dean was just unreasonable. Like tonight. _

_They had just finished hunting a werewolf. The thing had been eating when they finally caught up to it. They were too late to save the girl. Dean had told him to stay back and cover them with the gun but Seeth had seen something they hadn't. Huddled in a corner was another girl, she had to be only ten years old. Dean and Sam had ended up chasing the werewolf out of the abandoned house and into some nearby woods. Seeth stayed behind just long enough to scoop up the little girl and lock her in the Impala. Then he had run after Dean and Sam and the werewolf, despite Dean's order to stay put. After running through the woods for two minutes he realized he was lost and there was no sign of his brothers or the creature._

_Seeth kept going though, Sam and Dean could have been hurt. But he was the one that ended up almost getting killed. The werewolf had backtracked and on the way back to its house he had picked up Seeth's scent. It only took one swipe of the paw for him to be thrown ten feet and slammed into a tree. Before he could get up the werewolf was on top of him, teeth barred and gnashing together, the drool flying everywhere. The teeth were only an inch from sinking into his neck when he heard three shots ring out. The beast dropped down dead on top of him but it was only an instant before Dean and Sam were pulling the werewolf off of him. They watched it turn back into a man, an underpaid accountant for some private bank. They buried him and then walked back to the car in silence. _

_It didn't take a psychic to figure out what Dean was thinking. Seeth could feel the anger coming off him. Sam had made it a point to tell him that when Dean yelled it was his way of showing he cared. Seeth hadn't gotten that yet. In his experience being yelled at meant there were kicks and punches, curse words, and ramblings of worthlessness. No caring. Dean had yelled at him plenty of times and only twice had there been blows exchanged. Seeth had to admit, he had started each of the fights. And this night marked their third fight._

_It had started out with Dean yelling at him about stupid risks and not following the plan. Then Seeth started to point out no one had elected Dean as the leader. So from there it went to irresponsibility to trust to being too young to being too cocky and self righteous and so on. Sam had tried stepping in multiple times but both of them had told him to stay out of it. It seemed that was the only thing they could agree on that evening._

_So now Seeth was running down the road to end up God only knew where. After every fight he had gone running. The exercise seemed to help release the anger and clear his head. When he got back everything would be okay and they wouldn't talk about the fight again. In fact they would usually be playing tricks on Sam by the next afternoon. But this time Seeth saw a bar on the side of the road. He had been jogging for about twenty minutes and was cold and he was thirsty. It was only thirty degrees out and the wind was blowing. He slowed to a walk. It was a small town bar; chances were almost nil that he would asked for ID. It turned out he wasn't._

_One of the things that Seeth had picked up from Dean and Sam was how to play pool and play it well. Hunting certainly didn't pay well and they had to eat somehow. So Seeth had gotten very good at hustling in the short time he had been with them. There was a group of five guys over in the corner, very drunk and very loud. They were the perfect people to play pool with. Usually their ego was large and their wallets larger. So Seeth wandered on over and started talking to the one that seemed friendliest. Before he knew it they were playing pool. He threw the first game. When the men started to laugh and rant about how bad he was, Seeth asked for another game._

"_Please, let me try to win it back. That was my dad's money that I was supposed to spend on books for school. He would kill me if he knew I lost some of my money in a pool game. Come on, double or nothing. Please."_

_It was like taking candy from a baby. The men continued to laugh as they stacked the balls. Winner went first and Seeth almost laughed himself when a ball jumped and started rolling across the floor. These guys were hammered. So Seeth went and got the ball, a show of good friendship, and then took his turn. Three solid balls with the first hit. The other man never got another turn. It was all he could do not to laugh in their face. But he knew the dangers of sticking around so he grabbed the money and headed out. _

_He wasn't three steps outside before he felt hands shove him hard in the back. So hard he tripped over his feet and landed on the ground. The small pieces of gravel dug into his palms and tore his pants, bloodying his knees and hands. His face also gained a few scratches. Seeth got back up and saw they had formed a circle around him. Five against one, this was going to be interesting. Seeth waited for the first guy to charge him and ducked real low, sending the guy flying through the air. One of his buddies laughed. They were so drunk. The next guy attempted the same thing with the same result. The third one tried to go for his legs but Seeth jumped out of the way at the last moment, the guy ended up on the ground passed out. _

_That left two more. The man he had beaten and the largest guy of the group. What Seeth didn't count on was them coming at him at the same time. One distracted him by trying to punch him which he dodged easily. But the other one grabbed his arms and Seeth knew he was trapped. The man had a vice grip on his biceps and Seeth knew there would be bruising there tomorrow. Then loser of the pool game threw another fist. This one found its mark. Seeth would have doubled over if he could have but the man's grip was too strong and held him upright. The next punch hit his nose; Seeth could feel the blood dripping out. The third punch wasn't as steady and missed the center of his face, hitting his cheek instead, the chunky ring on the man's finger making a neat small cut. Another punch to his stomach and then he was shoved on the ground. _

_Seeth tried to brace himself but it didn't work. More gravel embedded itself in his face and palms. His pants were ripped some more but none of that mattered once the kicks started coming. It was like being back at Nick's. One man worked on his stomach the other on his back. _

"_You think you're real cute, hustling us like that." _

"_We'll teach you a lesson."_

"_Dumb ass kids, you don't respect your elders anymore."_

_Then the kicks suddenly stopped. He thought he had tires squealing and spraying up gravel but he hadn't been sure. Now he was. He heard some groans and cursing but before he could even look up one of the guys that had just been beating on him was on the ground next to him. Seeth started to stand up and soon saw Dean had the larger man by the throat._

"_You hurt my brother again and I will kill you."_

_The larger man was on the ground. Seeth stared at them for a second before he felt two hands on either side of his face forcing his head up. He hissed when one of Dean's fingers brushed up against some of the cuts on his cheek._

"_Sorry. Come on, we got to get you cleaned up."_

_Seeth climbed into the car, they were both silent, again. Dean was angry, again. But this time Seeth knew he wasn't mad at him. Seeth could see the hatred in his older brother's eyes when he took a final look at the five men lying on the ground. Some of them were starting to move. When Dean looked over at him the hate disappeared and Seeth saw concern. Seeth looked away. He didn't know what to think of this. No one had ever shown concern for him, not like this. But what Seeth did know was that it felt nice. That was the day that Seeth decided he truly liked having a family and that even he needed a family. _

**December 12****th**** at 3:00pm**

The memory had meant nothing. It was real, everything had really happened but none of it had meant anything. But Dean and Sam had lied to him and used him for their own gain. Hadn't they? Seeth was questioning their motive now. He wanted it to be as simple as them lying and now showing their true colors. At least he would know where he stood with them. But it was never that simple. And if Sam had been forced into saying those things and if the tape had been edited to twist Dean's words then that meant his two brothers were suffering and Seeth found that he cared. He would have never said he loved someone in any sense of the word but there was definitely something there between him and Dean and Sam.

While they had been together they had had good times. Dean and Sam had watched out for him and saved him a couple times from supernatural baddies. Not to mention taking him in after escaping from Nick. There had been the bonding moments, the typical brother fights, and the times where you just feel like a family. Up until that tape of Dean speaking he had never questioned it, at least not after the first week of being with them. Dean and Sam had some less than desirable qualities but they knew what loyalty was and what trust meant.

Seeth looked down at the tile he had just placed. Nick had left him here for the day while he did some errands. He was instructed to help out with anything they needed. Paul had decided that the dining room floor was a good place to start. From here he could see the back door, the guard who was watching him along with Charlie and the others, and the doors to where they were. He could also see the phone. Seeth knew what Charlie was thinking last night when he had looked at the phone. There was no doubt that Charlie wanted to try and call his brother. But his brother was here. Perhaps Charlie would call the FBI instead. Of course that would mean disaster for him and his brothers but they could get themselves out of that mess a lot easier than this one.

Either way the only chance that Charlie had of reaching the phone was for Mr. Guard to move. And there was no chance of that. The guy had a PSP and a kitchen full of food and drinks. Every three hours he was relieved for a bathroom break but someone always took his place for the short time he was gone. Charlie wasn't going to get near that phone unless something caused the man to leave, like a runaway slave. Seeth didn't know if he counted but the guy looked to be about his age, new to the business and eager to please the boss. Seeth could probably count on the fact that the guard wouldn't want to lose the boss's friend's kid. Yes, he would probably work as a distraction.

He looked out the back door and saw the tree line. The screen door was unlocked and the guard was comfortable in his chair, playing his video game, completely ignoring him. He needed to get Charlie's attention, let him know what was going on. He looked around and couldn't see any way to do it discreetly. Seeth remembered hearing once that the people who were slaves were given numbers to be called by, they never used their names. The people who owned them didn't even know their names. He could yell out his name to get his attention. But with Nick here they would be able to figure out who Charlie was. That would lead them to believe there was a plan rather than him just trying to escape. But if he used Sam's name they might think it was just a moment of craziness. Yeah, yelling Sam's name might work, they wouldn't suspect Charlie and it would still get his attention.

That is, he could do all this if he believed what Dean had said and trusted enough in Sam to know that what he said wasn't voluntary. That was what it all hinged on. If Sam and Dean did indeed hate him then he would be no better out in the world by himself then here with Nick. He had no skills, well, no marketable ones. His whole life had been dedicated to planning bank robberies, arranging kidnappings, even the occasional hit job. All his training was geared toward illegal activity. Although Bobby might take him in, but how how long would that last? At least here with Nick he would have food and shelter. Away from Nick he was out on the streets, fending for himself and doomed to a life of petty crime. He didn't even have a high school diploma or GED.

But the doubt was there and Seeth was finding himself putting more and more trust in Sam and Dean. In the year or so he had known them they hadn't let him down. They had been there for him. They had been his brothers. Bonds through brotherhood, this was what it was all about. Trust, friendship, fighting for one another and sticking with each other through it all. Seeth was finally learning that.

Seeth brought his legs up underneath him so he was crouching down real low. He tensed his leg muscles, turning them into springs. He placed his hands on the ground, ready to use them to help push off. He focused his mind on the door, his first obstacle, but the kept the vision of the tree line in his head. He aligned himself with the door.

"Sam!"

Then he ran.

**Alright everyone, here's the chapter I think you've all been waiting for. I hope I did it justice. Huge thanks to ALEO my beta for this one. I struggled with what to include and she helped a lot. So read and review and let me know what you think. **


	20. Chapter 20

**December 12****th**** at 1:00pm **

_**(California Time)**_

Megan looked over at her calendar and closed her eyes. She rubbed a hand over her face and through her hair. It had been five days since Don had disappeared and six since Charlie had been kidnapped. The first twenty four hours were crucial in any investigation and every law enforcement officer knew that after the first day was up every hour the chances of getting the missing person back alive dropped vastly. Every thing she had ever learned told her that there was a very small chance either of them would be found still breathing. The odds of them both being alive were almost non-existent.

She looked around the office and saw a lot of tired faces. Colby was over by the coffee machine resting his head in the palm of his hand, nodding off to sleep while waiting for the more coffee. David was over in the war room listening to Hendrickson ramble on. He just let out a big yawn, not all of which could be attributed to tiredness. There were two other teams of agents still working on the case with them. All those people were also half dead sitting at their desks.

They hadn't caught one break in the case. Not one clue. Don had yet to call them back. Colby had tried calling Dean Winchester numerous times without any success. Megan feared the worse. Either Dean was what they said he was and really had been behind Charlie's kidnapping and now Don's or both Don and Dean had been killed looking for Charlie. Colby insisted Dean was good and Megan and David still hadn't squealed. Telling Hendrickson or Merrick wouldn't do any good anyway. Either way it wasn't looking good.

"Guys! Agent Eppes's phone is ringing!"

Megan's head shot up towards the yell. She could actually hear the wind shift in the office as everyone's necks moved in sync towards the voice. It was one of the techs. They had kept Don's cell phone charged and ready to trace just in case someone called. So far two people from other cases had tried contacting her boss but no one else. She tried not to get her hopes up high as she rushed over to the tech room. David, Colby, and Hendrickson were fast on her heels. She walked through the door that the tech guy was holding open. Megan looked over at Hendrickson who nodded at her. She glanced at the agent waiting to trace the call for confirmation. A nod for him sealed it and she answered the phone.

"Agent Reeves."

"_Megan, its Charlie."_

**December 12****th**** at 3:05pm **

_**(Georgia Time)**_

Charlie had been painting yet again. This time the ceiling. As a result his arms hurt even worse than before. He had one last coat to put up before he started on the floors. Or at least that's what he suspected; right now it was just concrete.

Last night he had tried, unsuccessfully, to once again convince Tina they needed to try and escape. He would run and she would call. If he couldn't convince her by tonight then he was going to ask one of the other two people that came to the house with them. Hopefully he would have more luck talking them into it. He had asked Tina about them and apparently they were also new. The two men had only been here a month. Charlie hoped that meant they hadn't quite lost the will to stand up and fight, to try and escape.

He had seen Seeth when he had come in this morning. Seeth was busy laying down tile in the dining room right outside his room. If only he had some alone time with Seeth he could ask him to help them escape. Although judging by how he looked and held himself Charlie didn't know if he would be willing to risk it. Seeth looked pretty beaten up and not just physically.

So when he had heard someone shout 'Sam' he had been just as surprised as the guard. Charlie got to the entrance of his room just in time to see Seeth running out of the house, watch the guard get up so fast his chair knocked over, curse to high heaven and then run after Seeth. Charlie could hardly believe it. For a second he just stood there not sure what to do.

Then he went into action. He listened for a few more seconds to make sure no one else was in the house and would come running. Then he dashed to the phone. His fingers flew so fast over the number pad that he didn't even realize he had dialed the number until he heard it ringing. Charlie looked back and saw the other three people watching him. They were staring at him with disbelieving looks on their faces; Charlie could swear there was fear in Tina's.

The phone kept ringing, why wasn't Don answering it? He never had his phone off of him.

"_Agent Reeves."_

"Megan, its Charlie." Why was Megan answering Don's phone? "Where's Don?"

"_Charlie where are you?" Megan said, overlapping Charlie's question. She hesitated, Charlie most likely didn't have long and she didn't want to spend the time explaining what had happened to Don. Fortunately Charlie started to talk before she had too._

"I'm in Brent, Georgia." Charlie settled with the thought that there were a thousand perfectly good explanations why Megan would have his brother's phone. There were also a thousand bad ones but he didn't want to dwell on it. Besides he didn't have time, Charlie could see more men running around outside and it was only a matter of seconds before one of them came in here. "Look I got to go, be careful, the whole town is involved."

Charlie slammed the phone down on the receiver and rushed back to his room, he could see the others also doing the same. Charlie didn't go as far to pick up a paint brush, he figured that would be a little too suspicious. They had to expect him to be at least slightly curious in what he had heard. Sure enough, two seconds after he got back in his room he heard the screen door yanked open and bang back up against the wood frame.

"Get out here, all of you."

Charlie's heartbeat started to pick up. What in the hell would they want with them? Had they seen him? Charlie had thought he would be prepared to take whatever punishment would be dealt out. When he had told Tina he would run, he would receive the beatings he genuinely meant it. Now he wasn't so sure he was ready. Slowly stepping forward he paused in the doorway.

"Hurry up."

Picking up his pace a bit Charlie followed the man outside with Tina and the other two behind him. For the briefest moment he felt her squeeze his hand. Did she know what was going to happen?

Seeth was running and fast. Charlie had seen men run from Don and the rest of the team but he had never seen someone run this fast. It looked like Seeth might just be able to make it to the woods. Then he heard the gun shot.

**December 12****th**** at 3:05pm**

_**(Georgia Time)**_

Seeth only felt the old gun shot wound in his leg for an instant when he shoved off, then the adrenaline kicked in and the pain vanished. Before he knew it he was a fourth of the way across the yard. It was about a mile and a half of land between the house and the forest. If he got to the woods he could lose them. Seeth could see his breath in the air. He could feel his lungs start to suck in larger amounts of oxygen. There was a shout behind him but he didn't turn around. Then he heard a few more shouts. It wasn't just the newbie guard anymore on his ass; the rest of the slave drivers had been alerted.

The tree line was his sole focus. Every fiber in his being was pushing toward that one goal, reach the trees. His legs were pumping hard and fast, his heart felt as if it would burst. Despite the chilly weather he could feel each distinct bead of sweat drip down his forehead and neck. Over half way there now. He was going to be able to make it. The trees were starting to become distinct; they weren't just one big green mass. He could see the individual pine needles and branches left bare from the winter. Seeth even could make out a squirrel sitting on one of the trees. He was that close. Then he was falling to meet the ground.

He had heard the gun shot, had heard the shouts although he couldn't make out the words of the people behind him. He hadn't felt it though, in fact, if he wasn't face down in mud he would have thought they had missed. But they didn't miss. There just wasn't any pain. Why wasn't there any pain? The shouts were getting closer and he tried to get up but his right leg gave out. Seeth looked down and saw the blood.

"Aaaahhh." Then the pain came. He fell on his back and clutched at his leg where the bullet had tore through. Now he was breathing hard, not from the exertion of the running but from the intense fire that was burning a hole through his leg. They had to have hit him only two inches from the old gun shot wound. Seeth closed his eyes and leaned his head back, trying to manage the pain. The voices were only a few feet away now. He knew what was going to happen when he ran. 'But it's worth it. Sam and Dean, they still care about me. They still want me. They have too, I just helped free them. They have too.' Tears started to well up.

His eyes shot open when two sets of rough hands grabbed each of his arms and hauled him to his feet. Through natural reaction he went to put his feet on the ground when the pain flared up and reminded him that he had just been shot. Seeth sagged in his captors' arms and would have fallen back down had they not held him up. He did manage to get his good leg securely on the ground before they started back towards the house. Now he regretted running so far, he would have to hobble nearly a mile back.

It seemed as if the walk back took forever, Seeth wished it had, but the guards made him walk, rather hop, at a steady pace and they were back within twenty minutes. Nick walked over to him; Seeth had never seen him so angry. Usually his dad liked to put on a smirk, fool everyone that he was in control of everything. But not now. Nick was mad and looking for blood.

Seeth saw Charlie standing on the back porch along with three other people, not including the guards. They were going to make them watch. Seeth knew what was coming and he had seen it before, had experienced it before. And they were going to make them watch. 'Please Charlie, don't do anything stupid.'

The first punch wasn't that bad but it did knock him back on the ground, the two men that had been holding on to him let go. It was the kicks that were bad, they were always bad. The first one landed in his stomach, right in the middle so it didn't do any damage but it sure hurt like hell. Seeth tried not to curl in on himself but his body's desire to protect himself overruled a hard earned lesson and doubled over automatically. That left his back exposed and if Nick couldn't get to his stomach he would go for the back. And go for the back he did. His body arched into the kick and he let out a hiss. His breathing worsened as he couldn't concentrate on everything going on.

Once again he was hauled to his feet but this time there was rope being wrapped around his wrists. He was shoved a little ways to the right and forward. Then his arms were being tied up. It was whipping time. He had had this happen to him five times before. His body started to shake because it knew what was coming. Seeth didn't fear many things in life. He didn't like getting beat but he wasn't afraid of it. Getting punched and kicked was just a part of his daily life. Seeth feared his father, he feared that Sam and Dean really did hate him but there wasn't much else. The whip though terrified him. It wasn't as if his father hurt him any less when there wasn't a whip. But it was something about the object, Seeth couldn't explain it.

"Please." His voice was barely a whisper when he said it. There was too much fear right now to muster up the strength to say anything else. The tears came back and this time they fell.

Charlie took a small step forward when they punched Seeth but felt Tina's hand return to his, holding him back. There was nothing he could do but he couldn't just stand here and watch them beat Seeth. The man had just saved his life. There were two more kicks to the prone body on the ground and Charlie could feel the anger inside him boiling. But when they started to string him up like they had Sam he nearly lost it. His mind was racing, trying to figure out how to stop this. Tina's hand became stronger on his arm, warning him not to move or say anything.

He must have jumped a foot when he saw that whip come down and heard Seeth's blood curling scream because one of the guards looked back at them. Tina's hand remained on his, hidden from the guards' view at the moment. The other two slaves remained stoic. Charlie couldn't help but wonder how many of these beatings they had seen before. Then there was another scream and Charlie closed his eyes. Another scream. Then another. The fifth one came only two seconds later. With each one he felt Tina grip harder and harder but he didn't care to take notice that she was cutting off his circulation. All he was trying to do was get the constant screaming out of his own head. Seeth's cries echoed inside his mind and while he wasn't looking he could still picture Seeth's reaction to every whip.

"That's what happens when you disobey. Now get back to work."

Charlie's eyes shot open at Paul's voice. He didn't want him to know that he hadn't been watching. They might start again if they knew. Tina's hand dropped from his and Charlie followed her back inside and then went his own way to the room he had been assigned. A quick glance outside and he saw them untying Seeth. The kid was unconscious.

**December 12****th**** at 1:20pm**

_**(California Time)**_

"The jet is ready to go and we're leaving for LAX and traveling to Atlanta, Georgia. Everyone here but Agent Farse's and Agent Lee's teams will go. Get everything on the case packed up, saved to disks, bring all of it. Charlie just called and told us he's in a town called Brent everyone. We weren't able to get a trace on it but we're going. Tech will continue to work here to see if they can narrow the search at all. Meanwhile we head out. Meet in the parking lot in ten."

Megan watched as everyone scrambled under Hendrickson's instructions. They had already called the FBI jet at LAX and told them to start their engines. It was decided they would go to the Atlanta FBI field office first. From there they would decide their next move.

"Hey guys, I just looked up the town. There was a Brent, Georgia, twenty three years ago." Colby handed a manila folder to Megan that he had quickly put together right after Charlie had hung up.

"Excuse me." Hendrickson said.

"In 1984 the state combined Brent with another town. Now it's listed in the system under the name of Dansville. I guess the state figured the two towns were too small to each have their own separate police department, schools, etc. Doesn't seem to be much of an improvement though, the population is only 3,461. It's got one school building with the post office right across the road on the only main street in town. Their crime rate is low, one murder in the past five years, one rape seven years ago. Doesn't exactly sound like a place where felonies would be a regular occurrence."

"Alright, so what the hell do you think Charlie meant by the whole town is in on it?" David asked, joining in on the conversation. He had just finished helping the techs pack up everything they would need.

"Charlie mentioned Brent specifically; I think that whatever the area Brent used to cover is what he was talking about. Can we get a map of the town and the area that used to be Brent?" Megan asked, flipping through the folder that Colby had handed him.

"Yeah, it's the last page. It looks to be mainly farms. I count eight but the photo is three years old so it could have changed. Hopefully not too much."

Megan nodded. "I think we need to concentrate on that area, I think that's what Charlie meant. It would be easy to hide a lot in those fields."

"Alright well we don't need to alert the sheriff of Dansville just in case. We'll wait until we get there, make up some bogus story and get all the officers in one room. Once there we'll ask questions, make sure no one can alert anyone." Hendrickson said, picking up his badge and gun.

"Let's go then." Megan said, leading the way to the elevator, thirty agents behind her.

**December 12****th**** at 3:35pm**

_**(Georgia Time)**_

Dean looked over at Don. This had been unexpected. The two men that had been torturing them plus another they hadn't seen had just told them they were going to be working. Dean didn't know what the hell that meant but he did know that it wasn't good news. They hadn't been told exactly what they were going to be working on but Dean sure it wasn't baking pies. Don's return expression told him to behave.

"Follow us. The fence has been turned off but the collars are still on."

There was no need to finish the sentence by telling them what that meant. Both Dean and he knew what it meant. Don could see the reluctance in Dean's eyes and the thought of trying something but they wouldn't get far. Those collars would finish them before they could even get started. So Don got up and followed behind the men quietly, hoping that Dean would do the same.

There was a truck right outside the shed and they were ordered to get in the back. Don climbed up in the bed of the truck and turned around to offer Dean a hand up, his ribs had to still be sore, but the help was denied and Dean only winced once getting in. Their three guards got in the cab and off they went. They were driving away from the main house and towards the woods. Even if they could reach cover there was no way of knowing how far the range on the collars was. The windows to the truck were closed but he could still here Johnny Cash playing. There was little chance the three men would hear them if they talked low.

"Don't try anything. Let's just get this done and over with."

Dean scowled. "We can't just sit around forever. I don't know about you but I would actually like to save my brothers." The minute the words were out of his mouth he regretted them.

He knew that even with the windows and music up they would hear him. He knew that the collars were still on. But that didn't matter. Don flew at Dean, knocking him down. He got three punches in before he felt the teeth crunching, paralyzing effect of electricity swarm through his body. Don rolled off Dean and onto his back but the electricity had stopped by then.

It had been a mistake, Dean was aware of that but he hadn't expected Don to do what he had. The truck had slammed to a stop before his body began to seize up. It didn't last long though and he felt it stop before he heard the shout.

"Dogs don't fight unless we command it. Don't do it again."

Once again they didn't have to finish the sentence for Don to know what they meant. The overseers climbed back into the truck and they were off again. He sat in the corner of the truck as far from Dean as possible.

"Look man… I just meant…"

"I know." Don did. Before he had met Dean Don would have never been able to put a personality on this guy and neither would any profiler. And the reason for that would be because Dean didn't fit any of the regular MOs. He was a family man; he was hard headed, hard working, restless, loyal, and even honest. It was like looking at a younger version of himself, one that was wanted for multiple felonies. But it was in that moment that Don realized Dean was innocent. He had had his doubts up until now but there was something in Dean's face right now that convinced him of it. Don didn't know if he bought the whole ghost story, what other explanation was there but he knew that Dean, Sam, and Seeth were innocent. And he knew that Dean hadn't meant what he had said. The look in Dean's face convinced him of more than just his innocence, Dean cared. Dean cared that he got out of this alive and so did Charlie. Don had his team, albeit one member but it was a start. With a team he could do anything. "I'm sorry too."

Dean looked down at his feet, not sure what to say. He hadn't apologized. Dean Winchester didn't apologize. Don was such pansy. "Who the hell said I was sorry?" Dean put on his famous smirk.

Don actually smiled back. Then he turned serious again. They were running out of field to travel and they wouldn't have much longer to talk. "I know we need to get out of here but not now. We have to count on the fact that eventually they'll make a mistake. If we cooperate then that mistake might come sooner."

Dean nodded his head in agreement. "So you _guys_ can actually make sense sometimes."

"Shut up." Don said playfully. God, he didn't need another Colby on his team though.

**Okay everyone. I know what I did last chapter so I didn't want to leave you guys hanging for too long. I am without my beta ALEO for the next few chapters so wish me luck. The noticeable drop in grammar in will hopefully not be too apparent. I want to apologize in advance if it is. Thanks for the reviews and keep on telling me what you like.**


	21. Chapter 21

**Last chapter we alternated between Georgia time and California time. For now on it will be all Georgia time. Just wanted to let everyone know so no one gets confused.**

**December 12****th**** at 5:50pm**

Sam's head jerked up as he tried to stay awake but that was proving impossible. He had slept through the night, or at least he assumed it was night. The hammering and drills had woken him up. That had to have been at least ten hours ago. Sam had no idea what they were doing but he could tell the noise was coming from right outside his door. Were they boarding him up in here? He laughed at the stupid idea; Master had put too much "work" into him for them to do that.

Amidst all the banging no one had come down here though and his stomach was starting to rumble again. And he had to use the restroom. Sam believed he could make it to the restroom if someone opened the cage. He had managed to walk around for a little bit. His back was stiff and he could feel the dried blood crack a little with every movement. His arms still hurt like a bitch but they were getting better. He couldn't lift them more than a few inches and Sam wasn't going to push it. After hanging by his arms for so long he would be perfectly fine not using them for a few days.

Sam looked up as the banging stopped and he heard the door open. This time instead of struggling to sit up Sam managed to stand up, relatively easy considering he could barely use his arms. It was Master again. There was food in his hands and… a video camera. Sam tensed up, this couldn't be good. He stepped back when his cage door opened. Master just stood there though, Sam looked at him briefly but his eyes quickly fluttered away. He realized that he was supposed to ask. "Master, can I use the restroom?"

"Yes." Paul stepped out of the way and watched the slave go into the bathroom. He had video taped Seeth's beating, as they did with all of them. There was a small surveillance camera installed in the corner of the porch, positioned to catch all the action perfectly. He had debated showing the video to the slave but figured it couldn't hurt any. If the video brought 242 out of the slave mindset then he would just have to start again. Plus Nick had wanted to show the slave the video and while Nick certainly wasn't a friend Rick and the rest of the slave holders tried to keep their suppliers happy. Without them they wouldn't have any slaves. And energy spent searching for the slaves themselves would cut into precious farming time.

Sam walked back out of the bathroom after having quickly used the restroom and splashing some water in his face. He wanted to get in the shower badly but didn't think he would be allowed. Maybe in a couple days he could ask for one. He went into the cage wordlessly and turned around to face Master again. "Master, can I have some food?" There was a routine now and Sam recognized that. He was bored though, growing up like he had didn't allow for routine and Sam found he didn't like it. Even with Jessica there hadn't been a routine, that's why he had fallen for her so hard, she kept things exciting and fresh. Not as thrilling as hunting mind you but thrilling enough to still lead an average life style.

So just like all the other times he hate silently and without his hands, slurping up the soup and struggling with the bread. There hadn't been bread before and Sam was having a hard time trying to get a bite off. But he wasn't going to complain, he was losing weight and the soup and oatmeal weren't filling him up. Eventually he did manage to finish the bread. Once the plate was clean he sat back and waited. There was nothing else he could ask for was there? Nothing else he was supposed to do in this little dance of theirs.

"Watch it."

The plate had been picked up but before he had stepped back again Master had handed him the video camera. He flipped open the viewing screen and pressed play. There were some footsteps in the background, sounded like heavy boots on a wooden porch. Then four people appeared in the screen. He immediately recognized Nick and Seeth. Sam felt his heart start to race when he saw Seeth limping and the blood splotch on his jeans. The camera had impeccable quality and Sam started to silently curse technology.

Then Nick punched his brother and Sam jumped. The kicks came again and again. And then Sam noticed that they were in the exact place he had been tied up for days. He saw them put the rope around Seeth's hands and then string him up. Sam started to breathe harder, almost on the verge of a panic attack. He wanted to look away, God he wanted to look away so badly but he couldn't. It was like watching a massive train wreck. Each cry could be heard clearly and Sam visibly flinched with every crack of the whip.

As he watched his baby brother get beat something switched on in Sam, back on rather. His pride, his independence, his stubbornness that was often overlooked because of Dean's, but it was anger that engulfed him. Anger at himself for giving in so easily and succumbing to this guy's sick game, anger at Nick for what he was doing to Seeth but he was mostly angry towards the man standing in front of him. Sam felt nothing for Paul but venomous hatred. It was this man's fault for putting him in this situation, in a situation where he couldn't protect his brother. This man's fault that he spewed such hate filled words toward Seeth. This man's fault that he was watching this video.

But Sam knew how to play the system and he was a genius at poker. He had almost been a lawyer for God's sake. So it was no hard trick to hide the anger he felt and the sudden release of independence and desire to kill Paul. Instead he watched the video to the end and then handed it back up to Paul, eyes lowered like a good slave. He felt the video camera leave his hands and for an instant he was tempted to jump up, pull Paul to the ground and kick him over and over like Seeth had been treated. But there were more guards upstairs and there was no telling where Seeth and Charlie were. If he killed Paul they would probably kill him, forgetting about the money paid for him. If he was dead he couldn't help Seeth, couldn't get him out of this hell hole.

So it wasn't until Paul went upstairs that he stood up and slammed his fists against the wall. Injuries on his back be damned.

**December 12****th**** at 6:30pm**

Dean let out a big yawn as he sat down. His arms were sore and his back was killing him. Hunting kept him in shape, or so he thought. But nothing was like putting up fence posts and trying to dig in hard, frozen ground. The surface had been misleading, there was mud indicating that it should be soft, but when they started to dig it was like trying to cut through rock. For three hours they had dug holes, put in posts and stapled chicken wire to the fence. His fingers were bleeding from the harsh metal. And what was worse was that Dean had a sinking suspicion they were going to be doing it again and again for quite some time. He also anticipated them starting earlier in the day. 'How nice of them to ease us in slowly.' Dean said sarcastically to himself.

"You know they say you yawn because your brain is lacking oxygen."

"You know they say you should scale back on work as you get older."

Don let out a small laugh at that. It was true though. He was getting old and today proved that. Even though Dean was sore and hurt with most likely some cracked ribs and various other injuries the younger man had outlasted him by a long shot. Don had been forced to keep going although his body had all but shut down. It was sad when someone injured was able to work better than you. But it shouldn't have come as a surprise to Don. He had always envied Colby and David, being young and just starting out. And his dad's constant pressure for grandkids before it was too late didn't help any. 'Wait, I'm not that old.' Don looked over at Dean suddenly upset that he had put these things into his head. Not truly upset but just annoyed like he got when Charlie wouldn't get to the connection between a math problem and the case.

"So what's the plan sparky?"

Dean looked over at Don. "I'm going to ignore that one."

"Oooo, don't have a comeback for once."

"Shut up." Dean said, half laughing. If Don wasn't a fed he might actually like him.

**December 12****th**** at 7:15pm**

They had cleaned their brushes and picked up their supplies and were now being taken back to the basement of the barn. Charlie couldn't get Seeth out of his head. He hadn't noticed where they had taken him. After he had seen them untie Seeth from the post he had gone back in the room and had no idea where they had gone. The rest of the day he had been thinking about what he could have done differently. If there was someway he could have gotten to the phone without having Seeth go through that. The events kept replaying in his head but Charlie knew what had been done was necessary. But still, he felt guilty. 'Is this what Don goes through everyday?' Charlie couldn't handle it.

There was no way that Charlie could have missed the blood on the steps going down to the basement. Besides the obvious physical evidence there was a change in the atmosphere that a two year old couldn't have missed. When he walked down there were dozens of pairs of eyes staring at him. Then they all shifted to a bed. Charlie followed their gaze to a bed over in the corner. The blood led there. He rushed over to Seeth and felt Tina follow. Seeth was still unconscious but he looked a hundred percent better. He was clean, the wounds were taped up.

"We've had a lot of practice patching people up. They allow us to keep a first aid kit down here."

Charlie looked up at saw a woman standing over him. She was painfully thin and looked older.

"Do you know him?"

"A little, yeah. Thanks."

"You're welcome."

Charlie covered Seeth back up with the blanket, just thankful Seeth was alive. He sat down on the floor next to Seeth. He may not have been able to prevent Seeth from getting hurt but he was sure as hell going to be there for him. Charlie couldn't, and didn't want to imagine the things this kid had been through. He had to only be eighteen or nineteen. Growing up in his house it was hard to ever imagine any one being abused by their parent. By their older brother yes, but there parent know. There had always been love when he was a kid, his parents did everything for him. They protected him, they gave him anything he could ever hope for, they helped him shape his dreams, they gave up their lives for him. But this kid had never gotten any of it. Charlie wondered if he had ever even been hugged.

"Charlie."

The voice had barely been a whisper and for a second he had almost thought it was in his head. But he looked up and saw Seeth facing him. Charlie sat up on his haunches so he was eye level with Seeth.

"Yeah."

"Did you call?"

"Yeah, just rest okay." Seeth turned his head to the wall and went back to sleep while Charlie sat back down. He looked at the others and saw they were all talking amongst themselves, Tina and the other two people that had been in the house were the center of attention. He just hoped that no one would blow it. If the guards and Paul found out they might be able to move them all to another location. Then they would be screwed.

Charlie looked down at his hands, thinking of how good it would feel to see his dad and Don again. He had missed them so badly. It sometimes got annoying living in the same house as your senior citizen father, especially as Amita and he got closer. But now, after this, he wouldn't trade it for the world. And no matter how badly Don and him fought or disagreed sometimes he wouldn't have it any other way. Charlie leaned his head back against the wall, looking up to the ceiling, and just thanked God that his family was safe. That he wasn't in the position that Sam and Seeth were.

**December 12****th**** at 9:45pm**

"I've been through there, about a year ago though."

Megan, David, Colby, Hendrickson, and Yates looked up. Yates was the Agent in Charge at the Atlanta office and he had been helping them come up with a plan. It was late by the time they arrived and dark. Everyone decided the people already had enough of an advantage by knowing the land better and they didn't need to give them more help by providing them with the cover of darkness. When another agent walked up to them they had been discussing teams.

Yates spoke. "This is one of our newer agents, Tom Peters. You say you've been to Brent?"

Megan, David, and Colby all perked up, hoping this guy would be able to tell them more.

"I've driven through there a couple times, going home and coming back. There's a gas station that almost anyone has to stop by when they go through. Whether you coming from further down south or leaving from here to go down south it's a critical gas stop. If you're coming from this direction and going through it's the last gas station for 160 miles, if you coming from down south then it's the first gas station in 160 miles. The owner has always been nice and the sandwiches there are pretty decent."

"What about the farms and houses, do you know anything about those?" Megan asked eagerly.

"Not really. There's only one road. You continue on down the Main Street in Dansville for twenty miles and you'll hit the outlying part. Other than the owner of the gas station I've never seen anyone walking around in that area. I take it back, I've seen people working out in the fields but they are far from the road so I could never make out individual people. It's big farming country. I'd say there are about seven or eight farms. I think I heard somewhere that those farms provide about thirty percent of Georgia's produce and like fifteen percent of the south's. Either way they got to be making some money, the houses are huge, even from a mile away."

"Any other information you can give us?" David asked, hoping there was more.

"Nah, not that I can think of but if I do I'll be sure to let you know."

"Thanks." Colby said, turning back to his team as the man walked off.

"Alright I definitely think we need to divide up in teams and hit each house at the same time. If we go one at a time it will give too much warning. And we don't know what farm he's at, if any? But if they do have him at one and we alert them they could be gone with Charlie and Don before we get there." Megan said, looking at their most updated satellite images from the area. There were eight farms, all over 100 acres each, four of them were over 300 acres. Thankfully all the buildings on all of the farms were fairly close together.

"I agree, we divide and conquer. Eight teams, each one hitting a house and searching through it. Do you think we can get warrants for them all by tomorrow? How's the judge down here?" David asked, looking up at Yates.

"Screw warrants, we're going in whether they like it or not." Colby said, he wasn't going to have some judge interfere with getting his boss or his friends back.

"No, the warrants shouldn't be a problem. The judge used to be FBI actually so he is pretty good about giving us what we want. He'll go for it, especially since one of our own is in trouble." Yates liked this Don Eppes guy already. Anyone with a team like this had to be one hell of an agent.

"Alright, can you be at his doorstep first thing in the morning?" Megan asked.

"Of course." Yates said, rolling up the maps they had been looking at.

"If these guys do have Don and Charlie we don't want them getting off on a technicality." Megan looked at Colby as she spoke, giving him a silent but forceful warning.

Colby just brushed it off and followed the other four agents out of the building. It was late and tomorrow was a big day. They would all need the rest if they were going to be able to do this. They had to not only prepare themselves for the physical work of searching eight very large properties but the emotional and mental drain it would take from them. As well as the real possibility that they could be too late.

**I'm a horrible story planner and I never think out my stories behind the very very simple guideline. However, I do know that there are only two or three chapters left. Maybe four. So we're getting to the end here. Let me know what you guys want to see, I'm always bad at writing the endings and if someone comes up with a good enough idea I might throw it in here or at least parts of it. **

**Once again, this was done without the magnificent ALEO so don't blame her for the horrible grammar and mistakes, send the townspeople with pitchforks after me.**


	22. Chapter 22

**December 13****th**** at 7:30am**

David was impressed. He had been woken up by a phone call at six in the morning. It had been Agent Yates on his way to get the warrants. When Yates had met them at the FBI office an hour later with said warrants in hand all the L.A. agents had been quite happy. "We need to send our judges down here to learn a few things on timeliness."

"I agree." Colby was strapping on his SWAT gear and helping to check David's. Megan was standing a few feet away with Hendrickson doing the same, much to her dismay. When everyone had started partnering up to get ready David and Colby had quickly found each other. Grabbing arms and saying in an excited voice together, "I have my buddy." If Megan hadn't been so tired Colby was sure she would have slapped both of them. When she turned to sulk towards Hendrickson David and Colby couldn't have contained the laughter if they had wanted too.

"Alright listen up everyone!" Hendrickson shouted above the noise of straps being buckled, Kevlar rustling over shirts and guns being checked. "Agent Reeves and I are the lead agents on this, any questions during the mission are to be directed towards us and any instructions will also come from us. There are eight farms that we will be checking. We will head there together and knock down the doors at approximately the same time. We have no idea which house Dr. Eppes or Agent Eppes could be at. With that said you should consider anyone you run into to be a suspect who is armed and dangerous. Cuff any of the adults you run into and teens, if there are any children put them in a locked room." Hendrickson noticed the uneasy looks on the agents' faces. It was always hard busting into someone's home, scaring people who might not have anything to do with the case, especially kids. "Remember we are at a severe disadvantage here. We don't know how many people there are and we don't know the terrain. These are small town people, most likely they have lived in their houses since they were little, that means they know the land very well. We have to be quick and efficient. If you notice anything out of the ordinary radio Agent Reeves or myself immediately. There will be eight men to each team. Agent Reeves, Granger, Sinclair, Yates, Hufer, Lonvil, Crats, and myself will lead the eight teams. Remember people one of our own is out there. Let's go get him back."

Megan glanced over at David and Colby as they walked out the door. "Be careful."

"You too." They both replied in unison. Then the three of them separated, each piling into the SUV with the agents that had been assigned to their teams.

**December 13****th**** at 9:05am**

"Drop what you're doing and follow me."

Charlie started at the sudden booming voice from the kitchen. He had been laying down the wooden floors for about an hour now. While he didn't get to rest his arms per say it had been a nice break from holding a paint brush all day. He left the board that he had been about to grab and walked cautiously out of the room. Paul was standing over to the side and if Charlie didn't know better he looked a little nervous. Were Don and the team here? They should be. He had called them yesterday and Charlie couldn't imagine them taking the time to drive, they would have flown. Don wouldn't have let them linger around the office too long either.

So as his hopes started to soar Charlie followed Paul down a hallway and almost ran into one of the other people when they stopped. There was nothing here, why were they stopping? Wait; there had been something here, a door to the basement. Where had it gone? Charlie knew he hadn't dreamed cleaning up the mess. He could never dream of something like that. Then Charlie saw Paul take a painting off the wall and while a little shocked he wasn't that surprised when he saw a keypad behind it. Charlie saw Paul type in the numbers but was too far to see exactly what numbers they were. The entire wall slid to the left and there was the door to the basement.

They walked down and Charlie immediately noticed Sam was awake. The second thing he noticed was that there were four of the other cages opened.

"One of you in each, now."

Charlie did as he was told and walked into the one across from Sam. He locked eyes with the other man and saw something that hadn't been there last time he had seen Sam. Charlie's hopes started to rise a little more. Things were coming together. Charlie jolted when Paul slammed his cage door closed and locked it. When the same had been done to the other three Paul left, almost running up the stairs. It wasn't until they heard the wall panel slide shut that Sam spoke.

"What's going on?"

"Sam are you okay?" Charlie asked, last time he had seen Sam he hadn't looked so hot.

"I'll live."

"I don't know. We were working and he told us to get down here. I think the FBI is on their way." Charlie stopped before he continued when Sam suddenly shushed him. He was confused.

Sam quickly brought his finger to his lips and shook his head. He could see where this was headed and didn't want any snooping ears to hear anything. There hadn't been any signs of cameras or listening devices but that didn't mean they weren't hidden. If Charlie thought the FBI was on their way then that was good enough for him. He didn't want to hear anymore. That was all they needed, for Paul know that Charlie was connected with the FBI.

"But…" Charlie continued, unaware of why Sam would be telling him to be quiet.

"How's my brother?" Sam cut him off. Charlie just wasn't getting the hint.

Charlie stared at Sam with the most confused expression on his face. But Sam knew more about this kind of stuff then he did. So if Sam wanted him to remain mum on the situation then he was going to do it. "Not too good. He was in pretty bad shape after they caught him. He tried to escape." Charlie paused, not knowing if he was headed back into the area in which Sam wanted him to stop talking about.

"I know, I saw a video. How is he now?" Sam asked, prodding Charlie away from the whole subject but also genuinely afraid of how Seeth was after his beating. All Sam wanted to do was go take care of Seeth, make sure his baby brother knew how much he loved him. Being a big brother was tough and Sam truly appreciated now what Dean had spent his life doing, protecting him.

"Some of the others were able to patch him up. He was sleeping when I left this morning."

A wave of relief flooded over Sam; at least Seeth was still alive. "How many others are there?" Sam figured there had to be more slaves than just them. After all there were three others in here that he had never seen but he couldn't fathom how many people were actually being held against their will.

"Forty two." Tina spoke up. She was in the cage next to Sam and could see a small resemblance between Seeth and him. Tina's heart went out to him; she couldn't imagine watching one of her sisters being tortured. She had been here for so long and had all but forgotten what freedom was but she never forgot her sisters. Everyday she thought of them.

Sam was speechless. He couldn't imagine forty two people being treated like he had been the past few days. And there had to be even more than that. Tom was a slave broker, he made his livelihood that way and he couldn't have done it without there being more customers than just Paul. There had to be hundreds of slaves out there. Sam felt like he was going to throw up.

"Sam."

The girl next to him was motioning him over. Sam stepped over to the edge and allowed the girl to whisper in his ears.

"You're brother escaped as a distraction; Charlie called his brother using the phone upstairs. He didn't get caught though, that was last night. Charlie said that his brother and the FBI should be here sometime today." Tina could barely hear herself when she spoke. She got that Sam was afraid of the any audio equipment that might pick up the sound and she didn't want Charlie blurting anything out to get them busted so she figured that she might as well tell Sam.

Sam backed away and nodded at the girl to show he understood. He looked over at Charlie and could see the mathematician knew what she had told him, a big grin was across his face. The first thing Sam realized was that help was coming. Sure he would be arrested but they could get out of that easily. They had escaped from prison before, they could do it again. The second thing Sam got out of that statement was the most important part, that Seeth was the one who helped with the escape plan. That meant that some part of Seeth was still fighting. Even though Sam had said those things Seeth was still carrying on. 'That's my brother.' Sam thought to himself.

**December 13****th**** at 9:10am**

Dean grimaced when Hulk's gripped tightened on his arm. Both Don and he had actually been sleeping when they heard the door bust open. One man had grabbed him and pulled him to his feet while another had done the same to Don. By the time he was fully awake Dean was half way to another barn. He looked over and saw that Don was scanning their surroundings. Dean looked around but couldn't see anything except farmland. The same as yesterday.

Don had woken up faster than Dean had. A testament to his youth Don said to himself. And it didn't take him long to sense the change in demeanor concerning their two escorts. They were no longer the cocky assholes they had been yesterday; instead they seemed nervous, rushed. And Don hoped that meant what he was thinking. His team was on its way, some kind of help was coming. They appeared to be heading to a barn further from the house. If they were being brought to the barn to be hidden there it just supported his theory. He looked back towards the house and saw some people rushing about. Yep, something was definitely going on. If everything happened the way he was hoping, in just a few short minutes Charlie would be safe, he would get to see his brother again and then kill the son of a bitch that did this.

As they entered the barn Dean felt Hulk let go of his arm and start to move an old tack box aside. He wasn't sure he liked it when he saw the trap door underneath the box. The trap door was pulled open and Dean became even more worried when he heard Hulk shout, "Stay down there!" Who was he talking to? Dean felt the strong hold back on his arm and he was being pulled toward the hole in the floor. A hand on his back gave him a small shove down the stairs.

Dean felt Don behind him and walked down slowly. The basement was lighted and a lot better smelling then the last basement he had gone into too. But what he saw shocked him more than anything at Tom's had. There were dozens of people in the basement all looking up at him. Dean stopped midway down the steps so quickly that Don bumped right into him.

"What the hell?"

Dean nodded in response. 'Who were all these people? Were they all slaves?' Dean didn't move until he heard the door slam shut above his head. He walked down, eyes flitting from person to person. They all showed indifference towards the strangers in their presence. There was sympathy in some but in all of them there was a tiredness, a weakness.

"Hi." Dean said, for once all cockiness and over confidence left him.

A few muttered hi back but most of them went back to sitting against the wall in small groups. Don looked around. The floor was concrete; there were some blankets, a couple of doors, and some pillows but nothing else.

"They're all slaves." Dean whispered.

"I know."

"This can't be the only farm; Tom has got to be making money off of other people."

"I know."

"There's got to be hundreds of slaves in this town."

"I know." Don just couldn't digest what he was seeing. Dean was right this operation had to expand the whole town and there were at least fifty people down here. Other farms could have more slaves. How could this have gone unseen? How could no one have known about this? Don felt the FBI side start to kick in. His need to find out almost made him walk over to the closest group but something held him back. The atmosphere wasn't inviting, these people didn't want to be bothered. In fact most of them didn't even appear to be people, just shells of their former selves. How long had they lived like this? He looked back towards Dean and saw the younger man going towards one of the doors. Don followed.

Dean was never one to stand still for very long and since it seemed like no one was going to talk to them he might as well explore on his own. He went for the door closest to them and was relieved to see it was a bathroom. Up until now he didn't realize he had to pee so badly. "I know we've gotten close over the past few days but dude, you are so not following me in there."

Don just scoffed at Dean. He went over to the other door and was happy to see it too was a bathroom. It wasn't the cleanest he had been in but Don decided it would have to do. What he was thankful for though was the sink. Don hadn't had a shower since, gosh, he didn't know when. He turned on the water and was about to splash it on his face when he remembered the collar. They hadn't bothered to take it off and Don didn't want to electrocute himself. The giants had told them that they had turned off the containment system but they could still turn on the electricity with the remotes. So with much reluctance and one last longing look at the sink he walked out of the bathroom. Dean had walked over to the opposite wall and was sitting down. He was trying, but failing miserably, to be inconspicuous and listen in on another group's conversation.

Dean gave up trying to catch what the men were saying and looked over at Don as he sat down next to him. "So it looks like we have a new home?"

"Something has changed. The two guys were in a rush, they seemed nervous."

Dean thought back and he realized something had been off. They had walked very fast towards the barn and the two men's attitudes were totally off. "Huh. You're right." Dean realized what he had just said and couldn't believe he had just uttered those words to a FBI agent. "You think your buddies finally figured out where we were?"

"Maybe." Don said.

**December 13****th**** at 9:22am **

"FBI!" Megan shouted as she rushed into the door that had just been knocked in. There were more shots of 'FBI' behind her. She saw some people down the hall and went for them, gun drawn. "Over to that wall, right now. Put your nose to the wall, hands behind your head!" The rest of her team was soon checking the men for weapons. Amazingly they all complied. She looked over at the table and saw they had been playing. "Gruts and Jones, go clear the rest of the house." Two of the men nodded and started their methodical search. One provided cover while the other went in.

Megan turned to the six men that were against the wall. "Is there anyone else on this property?"

"No ma'm."

Politeness, Megan wasn't buying it. "Who's the owner?"

"He's out of town right now, I'm in charge. Is there a reason for all of this?"

"We have a warrant." Megan showed the man who had spoken the piece of paper and didn't elaborate. She wouldn't unless she had too.

"They're all good."

"All clear!"

Megan nodded to the man who told her they had no weapons and breathed a sign of relief when the all clear was heard from upstairs. "Sit down with your backs to the wall." All they men did as they were told. The six men were all Caucasian, most of them appeared to be in their mid forties, one was a little younger and then there was one man who only looked to be in his early twenties. All except the youngest had cool, relaxed expressions. He would be the one to give her the information she needed.

"Wright, give them the zip ties to put on. Put your hands in front of you and once you're done we'll come by and check them." Megan said. She waited until all the plastic cuffs had been put on and then nodded at Wright to go make sure they were on properly. She watched as Wright had to help the younger one secure his cuffs, his hands were shaking. Once they were all cuffed she sent Wright, Gruts, Jones, and Devins to go check out the remaining properties. That left her and three other men.

Pulling out Don's and Charlie's photos she walked down the line of cuffed men. "Have any of you seen these men?" An all around affirmative no, except the youngest one. He was late in answering and didn't seem as confident. She paused in front of him. "Are you sure?"

"Y…yes." Mitch answered shakily; he looked over at Paul who just glared.

Megan didn't miss the exchange. "Come with me. Just you." She pointed at the youngest man. There was another exchange of looks. This boy definitely knew something, they all did. "Don't look at anyone else, just come with me." She grabbed the younger man by the upper arm and led him outside. Her grip wasn't too tight; she didn't want to scare him anymore than what he already was. As they walked outside she closed the door behind her, making sure no one inside could hear their conversation, or interrupt it. She did her best to soften her expression but it was too hard knowing that this man most likely had a hand in the kidnapping of her boss and one of her best friends.

"What's your name?" Start out with something simple. Right now textbook questions ran through her mind, textbook thoughts flooded her brain, if she allowed herself anything else she would lose it.

"Mitch."

This answer came more quickly than the other ones and he wasn't as nervous about answering it, he answered truthfully. "Mitch how hold are you?"

"Twenty-one."

"Are any of these men your father?"

"No. I was hired to work here."

Good Mitch was starting to open up and answer more than what was necessary. "How long have you been working here?"

"Three months."

"And you're sure you haven't seen any of these men?" Megan held the photos up again, forcing her hand not to shake. The young man looked down, avoided her gaze, his hands started to fiddle in the confines of the cuffs and his feet started to shift. "Mitch?"

"N…no, no I promise."

The answer was uncertain, he was lying. He was nervous as hell too. "Mitch do you know who these men are?" 'My damn friends and if you hurt one hair one their head I'm going to kill you!' Is what she wanted to say. "This man is a FBI agent. This man is his brother, a FBI consultant. Do you know that in the past twenty years 56 cops or FBI agents have been killed in the line of duty? Fifty-one of those killers were caught. And forty-eight of those murderers were sentenced to death. Only five of those men were in jail for more than two weeks before receiving their death sentence by lethal injection." Megan had an idea of the statistics and they weren't that favorable towards the brave men and women that had been killed. But she highly doubted this kid knew that. Even if he did Megan couldn't see him concentrating long enough to pull the right statistics from the back of his mind.

"N…no."

"Mitch, unless you tell me what I want to know you will be charged with the kidnapping and maybe even the murder of a FBI agent and a FBI consultant." 'Unless you're killed before you can go to trial.' Megan added in her mind.

"If you don't receive the death penalty, you will receive life in prision. You're twenty-one Mitch. With medicine nowadays you can live to be seventy or eighty easily. That's fifty to sixty years in prison. That's almost three-fourths of your life. But if you help me…"

"I haven't seen the FBI agent, I promise. I don't know where he is."

Megan stopped when Mitch started to blurt out. She wanted to say he was lying but the textbook said he wasn't. Mitch had raised his head to look her in the eyes when he had said it and the fear was clear across his face. "But you've seen the other man?" 'And if you hurt him, I'll be the least of your worries. If Don is still alive?' Megan mentally shook her head, she can't think like that.

"Yes. But you've got to promise that you'll help me, please? I can tell you where over three hundred missing people are. I don't want to go to jail."

The FBI training in her didn't allow the confusion to go to her face but her mind was racing now. "Mitch, calm down. I will put in a good word for you and help you out, I promise." 'But you're still going to rot in hell for taking Charlie.'

"Now tell me, what do you mean by over three hundred missing people?"

"They use them as slaves, to do the farm work. The men inside the house and in the seven other farms are overseers. We're hired to make to sure they do the work and don't run off."

This time Megan couldn't just give herself a mental shake. 'Slaves?! I will kill you for doing this to Charlie.'

"Where are the slaves kept?" First things first, she's got to find Charlie, then she can take care of this bastard and all of his friends.

"All of the farms have a big barn. Just like that one over there."

Megan looked to where Mitch was pointing and saw the four agents she had sent to search the place running towards it. "Where at in the barn?"

"Underneath a tack box, there's a trap door. It leads to a basement and that's where they're kept. Every farm has one. The walls and ceiling are sound proof so no one can hear."

"Gruts." Megan said, picking up her walking talkie. "There is a tack box in the barn; if you move it you should see a trap door. These people are keeping others for slaves. There should be a basement in every barn at each basement, just like the one in there. Radio Hendrickson and tell him to alert the others."

"_What the hell?"_

There was pause and then Megan could hear something heavy being moved.

"_Holy shit!"_

"Is it there?"

"_Yes, it's locked in several places and the guns aren't going to take care of it but we'll look for something to take it off. There's a lot of heavy machinery in here. Something should be able to get these things off." _

"Do it fas…" Megan stopped when she came face to face with the barrel of one of the SWAT issued machine guns. She had turned around to see who was coming out of the door and saw that it was the man who had done all the talking inside. His cuffs were cut and there was a small, bleeding gash right below his hairline. Her hands went up automatically. "Don't do this. You're already in enough trouble, you don't want to add to it. Think about it."

"Lady, I just killed your three men in there, I don't think there's any going back. Speaking of which."

Megan jumped when the gun went off. Her eyes closed for a brief moment, thinking her time was up but the gun hadn't been aimed at her. She turned around and saw three shots, right in the center of Mitch's chest.

"_Reeves, what's going on?!"_

"Drop your weapons and the walkie talkie."

Megan had forgotten the radio had still been on.

"_Reeves, what's going on?!"_

There was movement out of the corner of her eyes and she saw one of the men come out of the barn.

"Get inside."

The man growled and took her arm, shoving her through the door before she had time to think. She almost threw up when she saw blood splattered on the floors and the three members of her team lying dead on the ground.

"Let's hurry up and go, we've only got a few seco…" Paul was cut off when he heard the sound of a chopper in the sky. No doubt they were already alerted to the situation in the house. "Close all the blinds, put blankets over the windows that don't have them and lock all the doors."

Megan felt her gun being taken away from her and the radio which was silent now. The rest of her team was calling for backup. In a few minutes this place would be swarming with the sixty four agents that had come to rescue Don and Charlie, make that sixty. The helicopter had been coming as an aerial view, in case anyone tried to run, she guessed they were just now getting here. But it would only be a matter of seconds before they knew what was going on in the house.

"_This is the FBI. Release your hostages and come out with your hands in the air unarmed." _

They knew. Megan stood still while all but the one who had grabbed her from outside raced around frantically. The house was in the middle of construction or remodeling, that was plain to see but the windows did have blinds on them and the solid doors were already installed.

"Put these on, your hands behind your back."

Megan did as she was told. "They are not going to negotiate. You're smart, you know that."

"Sit down and shut up."

"One hostage is not going to keep them from charging in here."

"Except they think I have four. And besides, who says you're the only one."

Megan furrowed her brow. 'What the hell did that mean?' "You else do you have?'

"Everything's done. What do we do know?"

"Wait until we have an audience; go get the three older slaves from downstairs, put cuffs on them first."

Megan could hear the rustling outside of the rest of her team scouting the house. That was soon drowned out by the sirens of the other agents. A minute later and she could barely hear herself think with all the sirens outside. Half of them had to be parked out front; the other half couldn't have been far behind.

"I want to speak to the agent in charge."

Megan tried to see where the other men had gone but from her vantage point she couldn't see down the hallway. She looked over at the man using her walkie talkie and waited for Hendrickson to get on the radio. There was no way these people were getting out. They had to know that. A minute later and Megan heard the black man's deep voice come over the radio.

"_We will not negotiate while you have hostages."_

"I'm not negotiating; I'm telling you what I want. I want a worker's van with it's back doors open and brought around to the back. My men and I will leave in that van with our hostages. We have your FBI agents and one of the men you're looking for. Once we get across the border into Mexico we will let them go. If you attempt to stop us at any point we shoot them one by one. I am releasing three of my hostages in good faith. If you don't give me the van within an hour along and get every federal agent out of my sight then I'm going to start sending you bodies."

Paul turned off the radio. "Open the front door and let them go. Don't expose yourself."

Megan couldn't see the people but she watched Paul talk to someone down the hallway. She heard the door open and even from the back of the house she could hear assault rifles and other guns being cocked. Then she heard the door shut.

**December 13****th**** at 9:30am **

David had jumped out of the SUV before it had come to a stop. He saw Colby standing by Hendrickson and went running over to him. A quick count showed him that only about a third of the agents were here. He had left all but two of his guarding the people they had arrested. Wright from Megan's team had radioed in what was happening and had told them about the barns' basements but Hendrickson had told them ignore that for now. They had been ordered to be the arrested into a room with cuffs on. The agents were to stand out of the room, they didn't want anymore hostage situations. "What's happened?"

"He just released three hostages, they're being checked over by another agent who's had some medical training. You two go over there and see if you can find anything out?"

Colby and David nodded and headed over to three very scared looking people. Their eyes were sunken in and their bodies were thin but they looked alright considering what had happened.

"My name is David and this is my partner Colby, we're with the FBI."

Colby shot David a look that said isn't that just a little redundant but David wasn't looking at him.

"We need to know many people are left in the building. Can you tell us that?"

The girl was the one who spoke up. "There are two other men downstairs that were being held with and four men came downstairs and got us. I know there was another man but I there could have been more I didn't see."

"So you saw two hostages and there were five people holding you there?" Colby asked for clarification.

"That I know of."

"Did you guys see any?" David asked, looking over at the two men. They both shook there head no.

"What are your names?"

"My name's Tina."

"Jeff."

"Tony."

"One of our men told us you guys were kept to do the work, as slaves, is that true?"

"Yes." Jeff answered.

"How long have you guys been here?"

"A year."

"A year and a half."

"Eight years."

Colby and David both looked over at Tina. How could anyone have missed this?

"Are either of these men one of the hostages?" Colby asked, pulling out Don and Charlie's photos. He prayed they weren't. All three pointed towards Charlie. He looked over at David.

"The other man is named Sam, I don't know if that helps." Tina added, these men knew Charlie, she could see it in their eyes.

Colby looked over back at Tina. Could it be Sam Winchester? "Did they come in together?"

"Yes, they were friends."

'Damn it!' Colby cursed to himself. Sam was going straight from the bad guy's clutches to the FBI's. 'I'll have to deal with that later, one problem at a time.'

"Did you see any other hostages, any FBI hostages?" David asked, he sensed the change in Colby's attitude and knew it had to do with Sam Winchester being the other hostage. He brushed it off, deciding not to deal with that issue at the moment.

"No, but we only saw the hallway and front room, they could have been else where in the house." Tina responded, lifting her arm so the medic could take her blood pressure.

"Okay, thank you. We're going to need you guys to stick around here in case we have any other questions. But you can call your families as soon as he's done checking you over. Make sure you give Agent Brock your full names okay."

David followed Colby a little ways away. "We have to get the rest of the slaves out of those basements."

"I know." David agreed. "Wright said there were four padlocks on the trap door. We can't do anything here for Megan and Charlie but we can find Don."

"You find the bolt cutters and I'll go ask Hendrickson for a small team."

"How are they?" Hendrickson asked when Colby approached him.

"They look like they're going to be fine. We told them they could call their families but that they needed to stay here." Colby paused. He really didn't want to tell Hendrickson who was in that house but he had no choice. "The girl said that Charlie and another guy named Sam were still in there. The two of them came in together."

"Sam Winchester?"

"She didn't give a last name but said that Charlie and Sam were friends."

Hendrickson tried to digest that part but couldn't. That meant Sam was a hostage, not one of the bad guys. 'What the hell is going on around here?' He thought to himself. "How many guns are there?"

"Five that they knew of. They didn't see any of the FBI team but said they were only shown the hallway and the front room, they could have been elsewhere. Sir, David and I would like to take a team and go release the other people trapped in the basements of the barns. We might be able to gather more information from them."

Hendrickson looked behind him as three ambulances pulled up; he saw more in the distance. Three prisoner transportation buses had just passed them. Their job was to go round up all the people who had been arrested. And following those buses had been two more SWAT vehicles. They did not need another hostage situation.

"Let's wait until they have all the prisoners on the buses and secured. When the rest of the teams get back here then you can get ten men and go to each barn. By then I can have three ambulances at each farm and some buses on the way to transport the victims that aren't hurt."

"What about this barn, can we get them now?"

Hendrickson looked over at Colby and saw the eagerness in the young man's eyes. There was something that Hendrickson couldn't place his finger on though, something that didn't feel right about Granger. He looked back over toward the ambulances and could see the medics start to pile out. Hendrickson looked back at Granger and chalked the feeling up to the situation. Before he had arrived at L.A. he had looked at all of the files on Don's team members. Colby's had been exemplary. "Yes, take all but two of the medics with you."

"Thanks."

**Okay, after a sleepless night trying to figure out how I was going to play this I think I finally figured it out. Let me know what you guys think. I also tried not to leave this one on a cliffhanger but it's hard at this point in the story. So please forgive me but also take comfort in the fact that I'm updating regularly. I could be putting a week in between like I was before, even two weeks. But I promise I won't do that to you guys. Also this chapter is longer than the past two. **

**Anyway, what I'm trying to say is please don't kill me. I promise to have an another update on Sunday, it might be late on Sunday but it will be on Sunday. **

**Once again my beta ALEO is missing from this chapter cries as I edit it so it is lacking that certain brilliance. **


	23. Chapter 23

**December 13****th**** at 9:30am**

Megan watched as some of the men headed back downstairs when the "leader" told them to get the other two slaves and bring them up. She had already profiled everyone. The man in front of her was a natural leader; he was calm and had definitely been in sticky situations before. He was also a dominant male, believed he was superior to almost anyone around him. This man was used to being in charge and treating others like they were the scum of the earth. If this was really a slave town, and she was had no reason to doubt Mitch had been lying, then he would be either the owner or the one in charge of the slaves. He had said previously that he wasn't the owner and Megan was inclined to believe him but she could be wrong.

There was another man that stood out from the rest. He was younger than the ringleader, maybe in his late forties, early fifties. While the other four men were nervous and constantly looking to the one man for directions this one was annoyed, angry. She even watched him question the man in charge a few times. Megan guessed that this man was not normally a part of this group. Otherwise the he would have been kicked out much sooner.

As soon as the men rounded the corner with the other two designated slaves her profiling stopped. She saw a confused and scared Charlie and then she became confused herself when she saw Sam Winchester. They were both in handcuffs and even through her muddled brain and fear at how south this situation was going she managed to smile when Charlie's eyes met hers.

"Get the three of them in that room. I want them up here in case we need hostages but we don't need them underfoot."

Charlie tried to keep an eye on Megan but the man who was holding his arm had a firm grip and was shoving him into one of the unfinished rooms. Thankfully Megan and Sam both were placed in the same room as him.

Everything had been quiet until the men had come down for Tina and the other two people. Sam had told him after they left that the walls were most likely sound proof. But when the door had opened up Charlie's ears had been flooded with the sounds of sirens. The door had closed shortly after and the room was silent again. Sam said it wasn't good news. That something had gone wrong. Charlie didn't want to believe him. But when he came up and saw Megan handcuffed it had been hard not too.

"Charlie are you okay?" Megan whispers as soon as the men are out of the room and the door was shut. Her eyes scan all over Don's brother but she can't see anything wrong with him, except maybe the loss of a few pounds.

"I…I'm fine. What happened?" Charlie had caught sight of the three agents in SWAT gear lying on the ground and had looked away before breakfast came back up. He hadn't been able to see their faces because there were masks but he was praying that none of them were people he knew. That didn't keep him from feeling guilty about it though. Those people had died because of him.

"I was out questioning one of suspects when the man with the gun came outside. He shot the man I was talking too and forced me to come inside." Megan paused but could see the worry in Charlie's face and realized he must have seen the three SWAT men, it was almost impossible to miss them. "They aren't anyone you know Charlie." Some relief came to the youngest Eppes's face but not much. "Charlie it's not your fault."

"What are their plans?"

Megan was slightly startled by a third voice in the room. She had seen Sam sit down against the wall but had been so focused on Charlie she had almost forgotten he was there. Her mind immediately raced to what Colby had said, the Winchesters are innocent. But she wasn't ready to believe him yet. "The man with the gun is the leader is that correct?" Get him to answer first, see if he's willing to divulge a little information.

"Yes, his name is Paul, he breaks in the slaves. The one who sort of looks like Dean," if she recognized him then she would certainly know what Dean looked like, "is Nick Colbert."

"I know who he is." At least he was willing to share information to get out of here. "When Charlie called and said the whole town is in on it we didn't know what to do. So we divided into eight people teams, each team hit a farm. I got one of the boys out there to confess and he told me about the slave ring, I was able to radio it in before Paul came outside and got me. The other four men on my team were in the barn across the yard trying to get the trap door open. My team heard my initial exchange with Paul and radioed for help. The rest of the FBI teams came in and now they're surrounding the place. Paul demanded a worker's van and free passage to Mexico, said he would take us as security and then drop us off when he got over the border." Megan purposefully used a more analytical tone. She wanted to see how Sam was doing under this type of situation. The young man seemed capable and could probably be of some help in getting out of here alive. But from his files she had never been able to pin a personality profile on him or his brother. She would use this opportunity to do it.

"FBI won't negotiate as long as he holds hostages." Sam said, throwing the professional tone back at her.

"You're right. He gave them an hour and said for every hour after that he would throw a body out." Megan paused, choking back some tears for the men out in the living room. "I figure we got four hours before we're in any real danger."

Charlie was thankful that Sam and Megan were getting along for now, after all Sam was a wanted criminal. But the more he saw Sam and talked to him the more Charlie believed him, that he wasn't guilty. The ghost story though was still largely unbelievable and Charlie didn't know if he would ever trust Sam on that one. Ghosts and demons did not exist.

"What about Don, where's Don?" Charlie had actually forgotten for a moment about his big brother but he knew that Don had to be going crazy right now. He just hoped Don wouldn't do anything stupid.

Megan paused; she really didn't want to answer that question at the moment. Just as she was about too the door opened and Megan was slightly happy to see the slave driver in the door frame, that meant she wouldn't have to answer Charlie's question.

"What is your name? And why is the FBI willing to knock down doors to find you?" Paul asked, looking directly at Charlie. When Charlie didn't answer in three seconds he reached down, picked up Sam by the arm and had him against the wall with the whip out before anyone could blink. He didn't know whether the FBI agent and curly haired slave were friends but he knew that there was a connection between the two slaves and he was going to use it.

Sam had been staring at the floor one moment and then having his face smashed into the wall the next. Paul still thought he was an obedient little puppy and Sam had planned to keep it that way until it was necessary to fight back. But obviously that plan didn't work and despite his regained independence and stubborn will his body still reacted upon seeing the whip. His hands began to sweat, his heart beat sped up, and his breathing began to hitch.

"No, no. Don't." Charlie had already seen Sam suffer for his mistake and he wouldn't watch it again. Charlie couldn't stand it when it was fifty feet away, he didn't think he could watch from five feet away. "My name is Charlie Eppes; I'm a mathematics professor at CalSci."

"Paul." Nick said stepping into the room with a photo in his hand. He saw Sam and had to restrain himself from throttling the kid. "Henry has this guy, I saw him when I went to visit the other brother."

Sam heard Nick say the other brother and that's all he needed. "Where the hell is Dean? I swear I will kill you if you hurt him!" Sam struggled against Paul's grip on his shoulder, keeping him against the wall.

Charlie didn't know whose picture it was but Megan did. She looked at Paul's face as he scanned the image in the photo. Paul took the paper and turned it around. "Who is this?"

Charlie's breath hitched in his throat. He saw Don's picture but couldn't process it. Why would Megan have Don's picture? She had answered his brother's phone; Charlie had felt something was wrong then. But there could have been any amount of explanations for that, at least Charlie had told himself that at the time. They had Don, his brother hadn't not been able to find him, he had been in trouble this whole time.

"He's a FBI agent." This man didn't have Don, according to Nick a man named Henry did. Therefore Don wasn't in any danger of being hurt, at least not by these men.

Paul whirled around and faced Nick. "You brought us an FBI agent!"

"I didn't know damn it. He was traveling with a fugitive, how should I have known?"

Megan watched the two enraged men left the room. They were arguing, this was good.

"Megan, they have Don?" Charlie asked, when the door was shut again.

Sam grimaced as he sat back down. He felt a few trickles of blood start down his back. Paul had stretched his skin too far and the day old scabs easily tore under the pressure.

"We didn't know for sure, he went missing a day after you." Megan hated the fact that she was responsible for the look on Charlie's face at the moment. "But Charlie listen, we had teams at each farm. As soon as they start opening the basements in the barns they'll find him. I promise you Charlie."

Charlie looked over at Sam and saw the pain from his back on younger man's face. And he saw that he wasn't the only one to learn his big brother was in danger.

**December 13****th**** at 9:45am**

Colby and David drove one of the SUVs towards the barn with an ambulance following. They didn't think that the people inside would fire upon them, it was reckless to expose themselves for that, but they didn't want to take a chance. Colby had told David they were allowed to rescue the people trapped in this barn, he had conveniently left out the fact that Hendrickson had approved for David, a team, and himself to go. If Dean was trapped somewhere he wanted to give his friend the best chance at escape. Although Colby doubted Dean would go anywhere without Sam or Seeth.

David parked the SUV on the far side of the barn, hidden from the house and other activity. He motioned out the driver's side window for the ambulances to do the same. Colby and him hopped out together. "You guys stay here until we give you the all clear."

The EMTs nodded in understanding, Colby and David entered the barn. "They certainly want to keep something down there." Colby looked down at the trap door. There were four sliding bolts and four padlocks. Colby looked down at the bolt cutters, wondering if they would do the job. He tried the first one and was pleasantly surprised when it popped off. The next three came off just as easy. As he laid aside the bolt cutters and readied his gun David slid the other four open. Colby nodded and David raised the door.

"Heavier than it looks." David grunted.

Colby waited until David was standing ready and then yelled. "This is the FBI, please put your hands in the air and back away from the staircase!" Colby went down quick, no use giving any potential enemies time to get him in the legs. The second he got to the bottom of the stairs he stopped. His gun was up but Colby didn't even know it was there. "What the hell?" Colby whispered.

David stopped next to Colby, he dropped his gun. There were at least thirty five people staring at them. Their hands weren't up but they were far away from the staircase, most of them were looked terrified. David only ever recalled seeing this look in children that had been abused extensively or who had seen some horrific crime. "Colby, your gun." David whispered forcibly.

"Do any of you have anything that can hurt us?" Colby lowered his gun and was met by a sea of silent stares. He pulled out his badge and held it up. "My name is Colby, this is my partner David. We're FBI, we're here to help you. I need to know if any of you have weapons. There are medics upstairs but they cannot come down until I know there are no weapons." Colby looked over at David who gave him a slight nod. What do you say to people who had been slaves for at least eight years, most likely longer?

"No."

Colby and David's head turned simultaneously to a gruff voice behind them. There was an older gentleman who had stepped forward from the circle that had gathered.

"Are you going to let us go?"

"Yes. But there is a hostage situation in the house on the other side of the yard. For you guys' safety we need you to stay down here until it is resolved. We will bring food, water… and clean clothes. For now though it's best if everyone just hangs tight." David responded, looking around at everyone.

"We're going to call the medics down here now. If everyone could sit on a bed we will have them visit each and every one of you. Is there anyone down here who needs immediate medical attention?" Colby added. No one looked too bad off. Sure they had some scraps and bruises and most were malnourished but they were all standing on their own, breathing on their own.

"This young man here does."

Colby followed the older man over to a bed that had been hidden by the circle of bodies and saw a kid lying very still. At least he appeared to be a kid. He looked so frail laying there but he had to be more along the lines of twenty, twenty-one years old. Colby nodded over at David and watched his partner go upstairs to get the medic. There was a pulse, thank God. Colby lifted back the sheets and had to look away for a minute. The young man's shirt had been taken off and there was bandaging around his midsection. Bruises littered what he could see of the unconscious man's torso and there were small splotches of blood leaking through the clean white bandages. Colby moved back to allow the medic who had just arrived room to work. He took another look at the kid's face and had to do a double take. Colby didn't know why he hadn't noticed it before but this guy looked just like Dean. It had been years since Colby had seen the Winchesters and he had never seen a picture of Seeth. This had to be their little brother, there were too many similarities. Colby could even see some Sam in the kid. He looked over at David who was going around and asking people questions then back at Seeth. They had Seeth's prints in the system but no picture; as long as Colby kept his mouth shut they would just think he was another victim.

**December 13****th**** at 10:00am**

Hendrickson paced back and forth. He had just received word that all the suspects had been picked up and were sitting on the buses. The FBI agents that had been left behind to guard them were now heading back. There were men circling the house, more with binoculars searching but they couldn't see in. He had four FBI agents in there and two civilians. 'If you can count Sam Winchester.' Hendrickson thought to himself.

A look around and he saw that he was surrounded by Don Eppes's office. His goal was to get everyone out of this alive but it was getting harder and harder with pressure from Sinclair, Granger, and every other person who was Eppes's friend. And now another fan of the agent was coming, Ian Edgerton. Edgerton was bringing a team of snipers down and while Hendrickson was happy for any help he was didn't think he could handle any more advice or questions concerning his decisions.

"Hendrickson."

'Here we go again.' Hendrickson thought as he turned to face Agent Granger.

"They've got all the suspects loaded, David and I are headed out now. We had one victim taken to the hospital, he had multiple lacerations on his back and they suspected internal bleeding. The rest look okay, some malnourishment and general injuries but nothing too serious." Colby refrained from going from foot to foot, showing any signs of anxiety or nervousness. He looked over at David who was on the phone with someone and then back at Hendrickson.

"Alright, radio me as soon as you find Eppes."

"Will do." Colby took off running towards David and slapped his partner on the shoulder. "Let's go."

"That was Edgerton, he's headed down." David said as he opened the door to the SUV.

"This is about to get interesting." Colby remarked, climbing into the driver's seat.

**So this is a very short chapter. I had a really hard time writing this one so hopefully it isn't too bad and I'm still without my beta ALEO. Anyway, I wanted to make sure I kept my promise and got this up on Sunday. **


	24. Chapter 24

**December 13****th**** at 10:15am**

David looked over at Colby. This was only the third basement they were about to go into and they were already emotionally drained. The second basement had been worse than the first. There had been ninety three people down there. The injuries had also been noticeably more serious. When a medic had called David over to look at an injury he had been disgusted to find the person had been branded. They had checked a few more people and sure enough it looked like everyone had the same marking burned into the back of their neck. Most of the burns were infected and there were bruises, flesh wounds, and scabs littering every body. "You ready?" David asked before swinging the door open.

Colby nodded, not trusting himself to speak. He had thought that being over in Iraq and working for the FBI for two and a half years would have prepared him for almost anything but he had been proved wrong. The door swung open and Colby yelled his now signature line. "FBI, please back away from the stairs and put your hands in the air!"

Don was cut off from speaking when he heard the door creak open and his heart started to race when he heard Colby's voice. When he saw his teammate charge downstairs he could have sworn his heart almost stopped. "Colby."

Was that Don's voice? Colby could swear it was. His head snapped toward Don's voice and he saw his boss. Don's face was scraggily with the startings of a beard and there was dirt and grimed caked all over his clothes but it was Don. "Don." He turned his head toward the man standing beside Don and saw Dean in the same condition as his boss. "Dean."

David was beside Colby in a heartbeat and as he rested his eyes on Don he smiled. He looked over at Colby and was surprised to see something other than joy on his face. Then he followed Granger's eyes and saw Dean Winchester standing slightly behind Don. "Colby."

"David." Dean blurted out in an attempt to cool down what was quickly becoming an intense situation. He tried to smile but faltered when the three FBI agents all turned to look at him. David's name had been a guess but he thought it had been a good one since Colby had talked about David a lot, turns out he was right.

David glared at Colby one more time before remembering his duties to the rest of the people down there. "We're here to help everyone. We have medics upstairs to look over everyone and check for injuries. Does anyone have any life threatening injuries that need to be dealt with right now?" When David didn't receive any answers he called for the medics to come downstairs. "If everyone would sit on a bed a medic will be around shortly to look over you. We have buses on the way to transport you guys to a local hospital. Until then we ask that you all cooperate and wait for a medic to arrive to look at you." In the first and second basements they had gone into everyone had listened and it looked like it was going to happen again in this one. Usually victims like this would be rushing to get out, asking to call family members, demanding to know what was going on, but not one person had. David figured there really was no set standard on how a victim of slavery was supposed to act.

"Where's Charlie?" Don asked, looking from David to Colby.

Colby lowered his head and tried to think of the right words but couldn't.

"Don…"

"Where the hell is he?"

"Don… There was a situation. Megan and her team went into the house that Charlie was being held in and somehow the guys inside turned the table. Megan and Charlie are hostages, the house is surrounded and their demanding a van to leave." David wanted to step back, almost afraid of Don's reaction, he took that back, he was afraid of Don's reaction.

"What about Sam and Seeth?" Dean asked. He knew Charlie and Sam were together when they first started out he could only assume they were still together.

"Sam's in there too. We haven't found Seeth." Colby had to lie. Don and David were standing right there and he didn't want to draw them in anymore than he already had. Besides, he technically didn't know if the unconscious man had been Dean's brother.

"Fuck." Dean said, turning around.

"Colby." David urged. They had to arrest Dean. Surely Colby wasn't going to let him go. Don wouldn't let it.

Colby knew what David was hinting at. He looked around and figured there were too many witnesses. If he was going to have a shot at letting Dean go then they needed to do it in a way that wouldn't incriminate themselves. "Dean Winchester, you're under arrest. Let's go upstairs."

"What?!" Dean yelled. He expected this from David, maybe Don but not Colby, not when it was just Colby's friends.

"Colby?" Don asked, a little caught off guard by what Colby had just said. They needed to arrest Dean. That's what they were supposed to do but for some reason now that it came down to it he wasn't sure he could do it. But then he caught Colby's eye and realized what the younger agent was trying to do. "That's right, let's go upstairs." Don tried to tell Dean what they were trying to do and he thought that Dean got the message when the young man started to walk up the stairs on his own.

David was confused as well. He had expected Colby to try and convince them that they should let Dean go. But when he saw the exchange between Don and Colby he realized he was missing something.

Don looked back over at the younger man once they got outside, safely away from possible witnesses downstairs. "You're pretty good at getting away when you need to, you managed to get the slip on us. You know those woods behind the barn, a man could get lost in there pretty quickly."

Dean looked between the three agents. Don was struggling with what was coming out of his mouth but Colby was happy with it. David was confused and bordering on furious. "There's no way in hell I'm going anywhere until I know my brothers are safe." And Dean meant it. He couldn't leave until Sam was free and Seeth was found. "I told you when this started, you can arrest me as soon as I know my brothers are safe."

"Damn it Dean you can't stick around." Don said, he was trying to do what his heart told him was the right thing but he should have known Dean wouldn't make this easy on him.

"He's right. There are over sixty agents just minutes down the road. This is your only chance." Colby added.

"Guys, he's wanted for multiple felonies." David started.

"David, I believe Colby."

"Ahh, I'm touched Donnie." Dean said, slapping Eppes on the back lightly.

"If you don't go then I'll have to arrest you." Don replied. He wanted to let Dean go, he really believed the young man to be innocent but he wasn't going to put his, Colby's, or David's job on the line for him. He also wasn't going to risk not being able to help his brother.

"Don. What are those things around yours and Dean's necks?" David had been watching the decision unfold and had been trying to read Don. If maybe he wasn't in his right mind or something but during his careful study he had noticed a type of collar around his boss's neck. David guessed that before he had just been too happy to see his boss alive to notice the collar.

"They're electric collars. Do you have a knife or something?" Don asked, he had forgotten about the collars until just now and was eager to get them off.

"Here." Colby said, handing his to Don. He gasped slightly when Don pulled the collar off and there were two small burn marks where the prongs had been. Dean's neck sported the same two burns.

David watched the collars drop to the ground and could see some life coming back into Don just from that simple act. For a minute no one said anything. He looked around and saw that the medics had everything under control. He wasn't going to be the one to persuade Don or Colby's mind in letting Dean go. They were going to make the decision without him. Right now though it looked like the choice between arresting or letting Dean go was at a standstill. "Alright guys, we still have five more basements full of people to free. Why don't we go do that and then make a decision on what to do with him?" It was the only logical thing David could come up with at the moment.

"No, I want you guys to take me to where Charlie is."

"And I'm going too."

"Dean…"

"No. I'm not leaving my brothers! If you guys try to stop me I'll give you a crime to hang me with."

**December 13****th**** at 10:30am**

"_It's been an hour Agent."_

"No wai…" Hendrickson was cut off by the sound of a bullet. He gripped the radio in his hands and bowed his head. Hostage takers would sometimes bluff but he didn't think this man was that type. To answer his thoughts his gaze was drawn upwards at the sound of a window opening. Then to his horror a body was thrown out. It didn't take him long to note the man was wearing SWAT uniform. "Damn it." Hendrickson rushed forward as some others pulled the body behind the cars, out of sight of anyone in the house. When he got there one of the agents looked up to him and shook his head slowly.

"Sir, what do we do?"

As if on cue his radio crackled to life.

"_I told you I would do it. Now that you know I'll hold up my end of the bargain get that van down here. In another hour I'll give you a body if I'm not on my way to Mexico." _

"Let the rest of the hostages go and then we can talk about a van." Hendrickson knew it was hopeless but he was desperate.

"_I'll talk to you in an hour Agent." _

Hendrickson walked away from the body, saying a silent prayer for the poor man's family. When he looked up he saw an ambulance pulling in. Hendrickson turned back to the radio and was starting to say something else when he noticed the ambulance was heading toward the back of the house. "What the hell are they doing?" Hendrickson muttered to himself. Quickly rushing over to his SUV he picked up the switched the radio to the frequency the ambulance was set at. "You do not have permission to continue. Stop the vehicle now.

"_This is Dean Winchester. I have a gun on Agent Don Eppes. Your agents Sinclair and Granger have chosen to comply for now. If you don't move all the agents away from the vehicle then I will shoot one of them."_

Hendrickson almost died. What the hell was going on?! He quickly motioned for everyone to back up as the red and white ambulance turned around the corner of the house. Dean would do it and he couldn't afford any more dead agents. "This isn't smart Dean."

"_Back them up further." _

All the men looked at him and Hendrickson froze for a second. He didn't know what to do. A gun shot and a cry of pain over the radio made up his mind and he motioned for the all the agents to back up again. "If you kill one of them I will have no choice but to charge the vehicle and shoot you." Then Hendrickson heard the radio in his hand crackle to life.

"_We all know that you would do it without me shooting any of your agents. You don't care about them. You've become too obsessed over catching me. No one can blame you though, I am very good looking."_

"What do you want Winchester?" Hendrickson gritted his teeth as he heard the sarcasm drip from Dean's mouth and through the radio.

"_I'm going to help the men in the house escape. Then I'll let your boys go."_

"Why would you help them, they're the ones that have Sam."

"_Because they're desperate. And unlike you they'll accept my help and then let my brother and I go."_

"You really believe that Dean Winchester? I didn't take you as a fool."

"_I guess we'll just have to wait and see. Now I want all your men out of sight of the ambulance."_

Hendrickson hesitated again for a few seconds. 'Where the hell is Edgerton?' Then another gun shot came over the radio and another cry of pain. "Alright." Hendrickson leaned out of the car and told his second in charge to get all the men to the front of the house. He now had six agents' lives in his hands and that was something he just couldn't gamble with. "They're doing it."

"_Good."_

Then Hendrickson heard the hand held radio he was holding crackle to life.

"_This is for the men inside the house. This is Dean Winchester. I know you have my brother but I'm willing to forgive you. I have an ambulance parked outside the back door, just like you asked. If you get in, with my brother and the other hostages then we can get to safety together. As long as you're willing to let my brother and I go once we get across the border."_

Hendrickson didn't try to talk, he didn't know if the men inside would be willing to take that chance.

"_I have hostages right now, three federal agents."_

There was a full three minute pause.

"_Have all the surrounding agents back off and open the doors. If you try anything you're brother will be the first to get shot."_


	25. Chapter 25

**Hey, just wanted to let everyone know that I edited Chapter 24 a bit. Basically they get upstairs and start talking away from everyone. I realized that if Don, Dean, David, and Colby were to argue about arresting Dean in front of the other people then Hendrickson would know and could get the three FBI agents in trouble. We can't have that can we? So I basically just had them go upstairs and then they start arguing.**

**December 13****th**** at 10:30am**

Dean laid the radio down and shoved the Kevlar vest under the seat. He had borrowed Colby's to shoot at in order to convince Hendrickson to stay back. Colby had made some pretty convincing cries of pain. He took one last look at the three men and received nods all around. It was decided that Dean would pretend to take them hostage in order to get Charlie, Megan, and Sam free. Dean had cuffed all the agent's hands with zip ties but had cut the middle part holding their hands together just enough so that if they pulled hard it would break. Don and David's hands were behind them to make it believable but Colby's had to be in front in order for him to drive. Colby and David sat up front while Dean and Don sat in the back. There were guns underneath the seats and back up pistols and knives tucked into socks, all within easy reach so that they could be pulled out at a moment's notice. All the equipment had been stripped out of the ambulance at the barn; thankfully everyone had stayed downstairs so there were no witnesses. The only hard part had been convincing David to go along for the ride. But once the African-American agent realized that this was the only plan that had a chance to work he readily agreed to it.

Dean's only reservation was that they didn't know where Seeth was but once they were in the ambulance Colby let him know that Seeth had been sent to the hospital. It was agreed no one would tell anyone who Seeth was and after Sam and Dean bailed they would go get him. The whole plan was risky but it was the only one they had.

Dean crawled over to the back doors of the ambulance and opened it up. Then he quickly made his way back and trained his gun on Don in an attempt to make this look real. He almost forgot to take off the safety. "Get back here now." Dean let the malice creep into his voice as he ordered Don back to his previous position. He looked up towards the house and the first one out was Nick with Sam. Dean almost blew the whole mission there. Sam's hands were cuffed behind his back and Dean knew right away that he was in pain. There was dirt and grime on his face and then Dean noticed the collar. He started to lower the gun he was holding to Don's head but was able to maintain his composure when he saw it wasn't an electric collar, just a regular one.

When Charlie walked out Don could have almost cried. His brother was okay, at least from what he could see. There was a beard developing and his mop of curls was completely unruly but other than that he looked okay. He wanted to say something so bad but realized that they might not know that he and Charlie were brothers. If they didn't know it would be best to keep it that way. They would already be playing on Dean and Sam's emotions, no need to give them more of an advantage. When he saw Megan walk out and silently mouth 'no' he knew they didn't have a clue to who Don was.

Charlie almost pulled against his captor's hold on him when he realized that it would be best not to let these men know they were brothers. All he wanted to do was cry out Don's name and hug his brother. He locked eyes with Don and through the look Charlie could feel Don reassuring him, telling him that everything would be alright. Charlie hoped so, so much had happened and nothing had gone right so far. Maybe they were due some luck.

Sam stepped up into the ambulance carefully and could feel Dean's eyes scouring every inch of his body, looking for any injuries. 'They're not on the front side.' Sam thought sarcastically to himself. Once he was in the ambulance he instinctively tried to sit next to Dean but felt himself pulled away by Nick to the opposite corner. It wasn't long before the other people started piling in, but even with everyone moving about between them Sam and Dean never broke eye contact.

When everyone was settled Dean decided he would say the first words. "You alright Sam?"

"Yeah." Sam lied. His back was killing him but he didn't need Dean to worry about him right now. If he knew his brother, and he did, Dean had a plan, this wasn't an offer to help the six slave holders escape.

"Have the passenger get out of the seat, one of my men will sit up there." Paul said when he noticed there were two FBI agents in the front seat.

"Not unless you want to get shot. We'll switch when we get away from here." Dean said. He needed to keep David in that seat. Although he didn't know how much good it would do him, the ambulance was cramped and starting a gun fight in here would be suicide. "Drive, turn right onto the road." He ordered Colby.

"South is left. Go left." Paul countermanded.

Dean glared over at the man who had now given two orders. He didn't like this man. Not only had this man already stepped on his toes he was the one that had probably beat up his brother. Dean couldn't see any injuries but he knew Sam was in pain, Sam couldn't lie to him. And since this man seemed like he was in charge Dean was willing to bet it was he who hurt his brother. The man was dead as soon as Dean got the chance, and as soon as Nick stopped breathing.

Don heard Colby start the ambulance and jostled around a bit as it drove over the bumpy ground slowly.

Dean picked up the radio and spoke into it. "Keep your men back. If I think I'm being followed we will shoot one of the hostages and dump him along side the road." There was no answer but Colby gave a slight nod to indicate that no one was following thus far. Dean put the radio down and turned to their guests. "Here's how it goes, we get to Mexico and you let Sam and I go, along with the agents and him. I don't need a manhunt coming for me because of some dead feds."

"What about Seeth?" Nick asked, gripping Sam's arm tighter. "And you're just going to let me walk away? I don't think so."

"You're right Nick. One day I will find you and kill you." Dean paused, there was no smile on his face, he was more serious now then he had ever been. "But for today my main concern is getting away from all the suits. As far as Seeth goes, I know where he's at and we'll get him on our own."

"Shut up both of you. We don't need to like each other but we aren't fighting." Paul stated bluntly. Fighting right now would hamper their escape, not to mention get a few of them killed in a space this enclosed. "As soon as we're away from this area and sure no one is following us we need to switch vehicles, it's too cramped in here and there's got to be a GPS tracking device on here somewhere."

**December 13****th**** at 10:38am**

Hendrickson and company quickly swarmed the house as soon as the ambulance was out of sight. They found the other two agents dead as well as a young man who had been shot. He assumed that it was one of the criminals since there were no other injuries on him and he certainly wasn't an agent. 'They were fighting amongst each other about something.' Hendrickson thought to himself. As soon as the house was clear he was back outside leaning over a map that lay on the hood of his SUV.

"Alright, this road doesn't have a turn off for forty miles. I assume they are going to be getting onto the freeway here to head to Mexico. I want every county between here and the border alerted to the situation. Get the ambulance's low-jack on and start tracking them. I want you to coordinate so that unmarked cars are following them the whole way. But don't let the same car follow them for more than eight miles. Understood?" Hendrickson asked the agent next to him. The agent nodded and ran off. He looked up in the sky to the helicopter and decided it was time to get them in on the chase.

He called the Bravo team over to him and told them to go search the rest of the basements. He also told them to arrange for buses to take them to the local hospital. There he would have everyone questioned and found out exactly what went on here. For now though he had an ambulance to catch.

**December 13****th**** at 11:00am **

Megan groaned slightly as the ambulance hit another bump. They had just gotten on the freeway and she had hoped the road would be better maintained but she guessed that was asking too much. Much of the past half hour had been spent in silence. Everyone had entered a staring a contest with each other. Don was still mainly looking at Paul who was holding onto his brother but keeping an eye on Charlie. He couldn't seem that interested in the mathematician without drawing questions. David and Colby kept their heads forward and were silent. She had been surprised not to see them look at each once. And then there was Dean Winchester who had locked eyes with Nick some miles back. It didn't take a psychologist to figure out there was history there and it wasn't a sunny one. The way that Nick held onto Sam indicated that he was enjoying this far too much.

The thing that was really throwing her off though was Dean and her teammates. David and Colby seemed far too calm and she really didn't sense any fear from them, at least not the fear that a hostage would project. Their bodies were tense and they were concentrating on something but Megan got the feeling they were preparing for something. She couldn't imagine thinking about trying to take on these men. There were six armed men in the ambulance and none of them were on their side.

And then there was Don and Dean. Dean had his gun to her boss's head but there was something in the way he held it that made it seem like it didn't belong there. Instead of keeping an eye on Don, even checking on him or maintaining a hold on him Dean was too busy staring down Nick. Don seemed a little too relaxed as well. Megan took that back at the thought that she really couldn't call any of them relaxed. But taking into account Don's body language and every bit of intuition she had, Megan could tell Don didn't regard Dean as a threat.

The ambulance jostled again and this time she almost ended up on her side. For the briefest moment she caught sight of David's plastic cuffs and saw the middle had been nearly cut clean. There was just a small amount left intact. She looked over at Don and demanded his attention. Wording the question in her mind she knew Don would know what she was asking. And he answered; all of a sudden it made sense. She looked between Colby, David, Dean and Don and knew that this was all part of a plan. One glance around the ambulance and now that she knew what she was looking for she was able to pick out places where they would have hidden weapons. There had to be guns under the seats, maybe some hidden on their persons and there could even have been one each in David and Colby's laps. Although she doubted that after a second thought, that would be too risky, having them out in the open like that.

Then she realized they weren't going to do anything. They couldn't, not with so many people crammed into such a little space. There was too much of a chance one of them would be hit by a stray bullet. No, no one could move until they went to change vehicles. Megan looked over the men she could see and saw that Nick and Paul were more than capable of handling themselves, they weren't nervous and she didn't believe either one would have a moment's hesitation in shooting any of them. The other three men though were less confident, she could feel the sweat from the man's hand that was holding her by her upper arm. The other two kept looking around nervously. And then there was Sam and Charlie. She had seen Charlie in stressful situations before, when the shooter had come into the FBI office, and knew that he didn't handle them well. Although something told her that had now changed. After all, it had been Charlie who had called them. And Charlie was holding up a lot better than she would have ever guessed. Sam's background told her automatically that he could handle himself in a situation like this. But he was hurt and did he know what was going on? One look between Dean and Sam and Megan knew that he had figured out the plan.

Don had decided this was the best way to save his brother. He had decided to team up with the Winchesters in order to save them all. Megan respected her boss and his decisions. Charlie may be the genius but Don had his gut feeling and Megan had always trusted him to make the right decision. She would trust him now.

"I don't see why we don't just kill them all now."

Dean looked over to one of the henchmen that had been silent up until now. "Because, you idiot, this ambulance has a tracking signal on it that tells the police where we are at. If we ditch the feds then we have no bargaining chips." He wanted to have a say before Paul or Nick really thought about it.

"That's right. It's time we found a new vehicle." Paul said. He had forgotten about getting a new car because he had been so focused on making sure Dean and Nick and didn't kill each other. The two were staring at each like pit bulls ready to rip each others' throats out. "Take him." Paul handed Charlie over to one of his men. "You, in the passenger seat, get back here."

David looked over at Dean and then Don but didn't let his gaze linger. The plan was for him to be in the seat with weapons nearby, ready for use. But if he didn't comply then he might never get a chance to use them. So he carefully climbed over the cramped bodies of people and settled into the man's spot while the one who ordered him back there settled his gun on Colby.

'Shit!' Dean thought to himself. This plan had already been risky enough and things were starting to fall apart before they had even made their move. He could feel Don tense up and the anxiety levels amongst Sam, Colby, David, Don and himself increase. Sam hadn't been told of their plan verbally but Dean and his younger brother had always had that special connection. With a few nods and a couple minutes of eye contact they had always been able to tell what the other one was thinking. They had only been in the ambulance for fifteen minutes before Sam had blinked rapidly four times, giving Dean the signal that he was aware of what was going on. What Dean hadn't expected was for the FBI chick to get more nervous. She seemed to know something was up and Dean couldn't figure out how she would catch on to it. But he wasn't about to ask.

"Pull over here."

"Why? What are you doing?" Dean asked when Paul told Colby to park. He caught Sam's eye and saw his brother give a slight nod. Sam was ready and he hoped that the FBI team was as well.

"Because we just passed a U-Haul rental company. I have cash and I'll go rent one. From there we can continue." Paul responded.

Colby did as he was told and watched as Paul hopped out of the ambulance. Paul had ordered him to pull into an alleyway between the building belonging to the U-Haul company and a storage facility. He looked into the back of the ambulance but only saw David's face, he was just as confused as to what to do.

"Send Sam up here." Paul yelled from outside the ambulance. He couldn't open the backdoors or pedestrians and other drivers might see into the ambulance.

"No." Dean said quickly when Sam went to go move for the front of the vehicle. "Take me with you."

"Now why would I do that? These feds don't care if you live or die, you're a wanted felon. If I take you the only compliance I'm assured of is Sam's. However, if I take Sam then I know you'll be sure to keep your hostages under check. Sam get up here." Paul said again.

Sam threw a look at Dean. He had been amazed that his brother had kept this calm and rational so far, he didn't know how much Dean had left in him. "Dean, I'll be okay." Sam tried to stress that he needed to shut his big mouth but Dean never listened when he said the words out loud so Sam wasn't hopeful that Dean would listen now. When Dean seemed to have calmed down, well, as much as he was going too, Sam started to make his way awkwardly to the front. He almost fell on Don and he did end up in Colby's lap for a few seconds but he eventually made it out. Sam had to admit, it was nice to breathe again.

Don thought that Dean would blow the whole plan right there. Although he couldn't blame the eldest Winchester, he wouldn't have allowed Charlie to go with Paul alone either. He looked over to Charlie again at that thought, just to make sure he was still there. Don had noticed Sam wince whenever he was jostled and could tell that something was wrong with the young man. While Don felt bad for him he couldn't help but feel relieved that Charlie was okay and it seemed like the brunt of the beatings were dealt out to Sam. Though Don didn't think that boded any better for Paul and Nick. Don had never met someone who could match his concern for his brother but he think he found it Dean. If there was nothing else redeemable about Dean Don could still understand him and admire him for the way he seemed to care for his brothers.

Sam was surprised when his plastic cuffs were cut off but he was none the less thankful. Paul didn't say a word to him but merely started walking towards the rental building. Sam didn't need direction and followed behind. He didn't need to be told what would happen to Dean if he tried anything. About half way there Sam caught up to the older man and took his place beside him. He looked over when Paul shot him a dirty look.

"You will learn your place in Mexico. I will do what I did to you a hundred times over to your brother and you will watch. When I'm done you will behave like the dog you are."

Sam had learned a lot from Dean and one of those things was how to give the best shit eating grin possible. So with a smirk that Dean would have been proud of Sam leaned over and said in a nice low voice. "Two Winchesters are not the same as one."

Ten minutes had passed and Sam and Paul hadn't returned. Dean was starting to get antsy and had begun to shift in his spot on the floor of the ambulance. He wanted to get up and look out the window but didn't want the four remaining assholes to think he was up to anything and jeopardize Sam's life. So, much to Don's dismay, he stayed put. Eight seconds later though and he started to squirm again. It was after two more minutes of shifting that Don turned around and gave him a glare.

It was then that the back doors to the ambulance opened and the passengers were greeted with a U-Haul backed up and ready for loading. The rental vehicle blocked anybody on the street from seeing the scene unfold but that didn't mean they could take their sweet time.

"Alright, everyone in the back but you," Paul pointed toward Colby, "and you Vick."

Dean looked around and briefly met eye contact with all his men. He scanned over the FBI chick and saw her nod, Charlie was still clueless as to what was going on it seemed. He saw Sam and was grateful that his cuff links had been cut. An extra set of hands was helpful and with it being Sam's he didn't have to worry about no weapon being in them. Dean saw David turn around, as if preparing to get out, so that his back was facing him and not the other men. He saw David jerk his hands ever so slightly and watched the cuffs snap with ease. He looked at Don's hands and saw they were now free, a quick glance behind also showed that Colby had done the same.

Then everything slowed down. The only people left in the ambulance were Colby, David, Don, and Dean. Paul was the only one looking at them with his hands on Sam. Nick had a hold of Charlie but his back was turned towards them. And one of the men had gone around to the driver's seat to get Colby out. Megan was standing just to the side, left on her own for the moment. Rednecks always thought women weren't a threat. Colby reached under the seat, David grabbed the small pistol from his leg holster and Dean and Don reached behind them for the standard FBI issued Glock 22s. Megan dropped to the ground when the four guns came out. Four shots went off simultaneously and four bodies dropped to the ground. They could hear people scream from the sidewalk.

"Do it and I'll shoot him!"

Dean's hands would have been shaking if he hadn't been trained to use a gun since he was seven years old. The adrenaline had flared on in an instant and when he saw Nick drop with a hole in his the back of his head he felt more satisfied then he ever had killing something supernatural. It had been a tough choice between shooting Paul or Nick first but had decided that Nick was the easier target. And the rage he felt towards the man was far greater than that towards Paul. When he trained his gun on the last man though he regretted his choice instantly, Paul was holding a gun to Sam's forehead.

"You're dead if you don't let him go." His voice was steel and Dean meant every word he had just said. Killing one more person who had harmed his brother wouldn't bother him.

Sam looked over at Dean, pleading with his eyes to his older brother not to do anything stupid. But he knew his brother. "It's alright Dean. Just take me and let's go wherever." Sam said first to Dean and then Paul. There were six innocent lives here and he didn't want anyone of their heads' on him.

"Not quite." Paul responded. "I want you sweetie," he nodded toward Megan without taking his eyes off Dean, "to get in the back and shut the door behind you."

Megan didn't get a chance to move before Don called out.

"No, I'll go." Don didn't want any more of his team put in jeopardy. He was their boss and he was their leader, he wouldn't have them killed for his mistakes and stupidity at allowing himself to be caught by these hillbillies.

Charlie shifted on his feet. "Don." He realized too late that Paul could still use the information that Don and he were brothers against him.

Paul glanced over at Charlie, the FBI agent and the slave knew each other.

The gun shot was loud in the quiet alley and there were no screams but for the sirens fast approaching.

**We all knew Dean really wouldn't turn against the FBI. Well, at least not against Colby, David, and Don. One of the best things about both Numb3rs and Supernatural is the concern that Don and Dean share for their younger brothers. I don't notice if anyone noticed this but there is a scene in the two shows that demonstrate their care for their brothers very well. And it's almost identical, I nearly freaked when I put two and two together. In Supernatural during the episode **_**Born Under A Bad Sign**_** where Sam is possessed there is a part where Dean sees blood all over Sam's shirt and starts moving his outer jacket aside to check for injuries before Sam says its not his blood. And then in Numb3rs, **_**Rampage**_**, I believe, it's the episode where the shooter comes into the FBI office. Don goes to check on Charlie and Charlie is holding his laptop up to his chest. Don moves the laptop and Charlie's jacket out of the way to check for injuries before Charlie says he's not hurt. I just had to share that with you guys because I loved it. Anyway, please don't think I have all of Supernatural and Numb3rs memorized because I don't, no really, I don't.**


	26. Chapter 26

**December 13****th**** at 11:45am**

The gun shot was loud in the quiet alley and there were no screams but for the sirens fast approaching.

It didn't matter to Dean though, his gun was smoking and Paul was dead. For the briefest moment the bastard had taken his eyes off Dean, he had been distracted. And that second was all Dean had needed to get a shot off. He had seen his opportunity and taken it.

For a moment no one moved. Don could hear the harsh breathing from his teammates. Everyone's adrenaline had reached its max. It was over, everything was over now. Don dropped his gun to his side, closely followed by Colby and David, and rushed to Charlie. He grabbed Charlie's head in his hands, looked his brother in the eyes and then hugged him. There had been maybe ever three times where Don had actually, truly hugged his brother, now Don wished there had been more. He had come so close to losing Charlie so many times but now they were safe, everyone was safe.

"Don." Charlie said after a few seconds, his brother was smothering him and it was kind of awkward being hugged by Don in front of the rest of the FBI team, not to mention two fugitives. But despite not being able to breathe and being slightly embarrassed there was only relief that it was all over and disbelief that this had happened in his voice. It was over, he was safe now, Don was here. Everything was going to be okay.

Dean was the last one to drop his gun. He had kept it aimed at Paul, almost afraid he would get up. After more than twenty seconds he finally lowered the gun and raised his eyes to meet Sam's. They didn't hug, Winchester men never hugged but there was more emotion and love through that look than most families gave in a week. They stared at each for a while and then turned to Nick lying on the ground. Neither of them could believe it, he was dead, their worries were gone.

"It's a good thing you guys took me hostage, Don, David, and Megan couldn't do anything about it. Besides, you promised to drop me off a couple blocks up the street." All eyes turned to Colby and he just grinned. He walked toward Dean and dropped his gun on the floor of the U-haul van. "We better get out of here, out that side, the police aren't far behind."

"Let's go then." Dean said, raising his gun mock-threateningly towards Colby but lowered it seconds later. "Sam." Dean pointed toward a piece of junk that had been parked in the alley. He turned to follow Sam and their willing hostage to the car but stopped half way there. "There could have been something special, if only you hadn't been a fed." He gave Don the biggest shit eating grin he could muster and headed toward the car Sam already had started.

Don watched Dean and Sam head off. He wasn't worried, Colby would be fine with them and he knew that the young FBI agent would be dropped off just a short ways from here. Don wanted to say something back but he couldn't think of anything. Dean Winchester had been an enigma before all this started and nothing had changed about that. The only thing Don had learned from this was that the Winchester brothers were not guilty of everything they were accused of. He suspected the credit card fraud was real enough and alright, maybe some of the breaking and entering as well. But Don knew there was no truth in the murder charges. While he wasn't quite ready to believe in the unbelievable he had a gut feeling telling him that it was better the Winchesters were on the streets then in some jail.

"Don," Megan started, watching two felons walk off and steal a car right in front of them.

"They're not guilty. I don't know what it is but I know they aren't. They're good people." With that Don saw the car round the corner and Dean drove out of sight.

**December 13****th**** at 12:55pm**

"Where the hell are they?!" Hendrickson yelled as he slammed the door to the SUV closed. He stormed over to the ambulance where Eppes and his FBI team were gathered.

Don started to roll his eyes and groan when he heard the agent's voice but forced himself to stop. He had actually forgotten about Hendrickson for a while. It had been nice. "Who?"

"What happened?" There wasn't any yelling this time but he almost drew blood digging his fingers into his palm to keep from punching Don.

"When David and Colby found me with Dean Winchester we promptly arrested him."

It took all over Colby's willpower not to snort at this.

Don almost shot the young agent a look, knowing that he would be finding it hard not to laugh. "But Dean came up with a good plan. He figured if the men in those body bags believed they could get away then we could get Megan and Charlie back."

"Why would he come up with a plan to help you?"

"He didn't. He wanted to get Sam back and this was the only way he could see to do it. He needed our help as much as we needed his."

"And you agreed to let him go in return?"

Don chose not to answer directly. "We played along, it was the only plan anyone had. Dean pretended to shoot at us and handcuffed our hands but cut the plastic ties so we could break them easily. We put guns within our reach but out of sight. The opportunity came when the guys wanted to switch from the ambulance to the U-Haul van. We called on them to surrender but they refused forcing us to kill them all. Then Dean managed to grab a hold of Colby before we could stop him. They got away and dropped Colby off a few blocks away from here."

"They headed west." Colby lied.

"Don't expect to walk away from this Eppes."

"Oh I do. I already talked to the Merrick. I thought he would want to know what was going on. He thought our plan was a pretty good one. It seems the Director agrees that getting five wanted felons was better than two."

There was something going on here. Hendrickson knew it. They trained you to follow solid leads and clues in Quantico but any agent who has been in the field for more than five years knows that his gut intuition is better. Unfortunately a feeling couldn't get you anywhere. Hendrickson glared at the team one last time and left.

Megan walked back to Charlie, Colby, David, and Don. She waited until the EMT left the area before she hissed through her teeth. "Don what the hell are we doing?"

"We're going to a hotel. I'm exhausted and I have a feeling we're going to be here a few days."

Just like Don, she thought. But that was it, nothing about this was Don. If she knew one thing about Don he was very black and white. There were very few shades of gray in Don's world. Megan would have never imagined Don letting two known felons go. And whatever seemed to be affecting her boss and also had its hold on Colby and David. She knew Colby was friends with the Winchesters but David wasn't. David was also a by-the-book agent, if not more so than Don. But none of them seemed bothered by the fact that they had just broken the law themselves and could be charged with aiding and abetting the escape of two dangerous felons.

When she thought about it the fact that Sam and Dean got away wasn't really important. If Don trusted them then that would have to be enough for her for now. What really mattered was that everyone was okay. Everyone had gotten out alive mostly unscathed. Megan shook her head and followed behind the boys, her boys.

**December 15****th**** at 2:30pm **

_**(California Time) **_

Don looked over toward his dad and Charlie. They were sitting a couple feet away from him, focused on the football game. Normally they watched baseball or the news but it was their first day back, baseball wasn't on and their minds were too drained to concentrate on anything that required thinking. He smiled to himself before turning back to the game but not completely focusing on it. One thing that he could not get out of his head was Charlie's actions.

While Charlie had his strengths Don never assumed one of them was handling intense situations. In fact, he knew that Charlie couldn't deal when things got complicated. His brother had always retreated into the math. When their mother had died, when he had been shot and numerous other times. But by all accounts Charlie had been a major contributor to their release. Perhaps the only person that helped more was Seeth. Don was proud of Charlie, of course, he always had been. But this time was different. Maybe it was because Charlie had performed on Don's level. It wasn't some mumbo jumbo that Don couldn't understand and was blown away because of the complexity. It was because Charlie had literally save hundreds of lives in a matter of minutes by doing something that Don would not have expected out of him. He might have expected it of himself but not that level of bravery out of Charlie. Never again would he be able to look at his brother in the same way.

Don's thoughts were interrupted when the phone rang. "I'll get it." He said toward as he got up, his brother and dad just gave him nods. "Don Eppes?" Don answered the phone.

"This is Agent Hendrickson, is Don Eppes there."

Don had to bite back a groan when he heard who was on the other end. He had dealt with the man and then quickly booked it back to L.A. Hendrickson had been given control of the case, something Don was all too happy to hand over. It had been a fool's hope but Don was praying that he wouldn't have to deal with the insufferable agent again. "This is he."

"I just wanted to let you know that I found Nick Colbert's son. He was the one that we found in Paul's basement, pretty banged up. We ran his fingerprints through the system and got a match. I got word from the hospital that he woke up a little while ago. I'm going down there this evening to question him."

In all the excitement and confusion Don had forgotten about fingerprinting. He had forgotten that Seeth's prints were in the system. Dean and Sam Winchester had no hope of getting to him now. Don wished he could do something but knew he couldn't. He had already risked too much and there was no plausible excuse, explanation or plan he could come up with. "Okay."

"And…" It killed Hendrickson to say this. "Dean and Sam Winchester broke into the impound and got their car back."

At that Don had to stifle a laugh. He could just picture Hendrickson's face while he was saying this. "You didn't have guards posted?" Don asked when he could open his mouth without laughing.

"They knocked the guards unconscious. I'll keep you updated. Good bye."

Before Don had a chance to say anything else Hendrickson hung up. When he walked back into the living room and Charlie asked who was on the phone Don doubled over with laughter.

**December 15****th**** at 7:00pm**

_**(Georgia Time) **_

"I'm Agent Hendrickson, I'm with the FBI. I have some questions for you son."

Seeth was staring out the window at the stars in the sky. They were bright. The hospital was located in a small town, apparently right outside of Brent. There wasn't enough smog or artificial lights to cover up the shining dots hanging in the black velvet sky and Seeth liked it. It was an unknown phenomenon but the supernatural baddies always liked to hang out in small towns. Seeth never got tired of it, he loved the wide open spaces and the way you could see for miles. But the stars were his favorite, he didn't know why but they had always been.

"Can you hear me?"

The nurse had told him that an agent would be coming to speak with him. Seeth had woken up a few hours ago, the older lady had said he had been out for two days. No visitors. That's what the nurse had said. Most of the slaves had called their families and were home. A few were hurt more seriously and were still here but their families were with them. The ones that had no families had been sent to a homeless shelter, they were going to be given help in finding jobs and low-cost housing. Seeth shifted his gaze from the window the wall straight ahead.

"Is your name Seeth Colbert?"

They knew who he was. That would explain the restraints. His feet were free while his hands were tied down to the bed with cloth restraints. He had risked his life to free people who wouldn't come see him and in return he was going to jail

"What did your father want with Charles Eppes?"

His father, he didn't have a father. He didn't have a family. No one cared for him. No one told him anything. Why would he know what was going on?

"If you give me the information I need then I can make sure you don't stay in prison until you're eighty."

Why would he care? At least in there he would have three square meals a day, a roof over his head, a bed to sleep in. Right now he didn't have anywhere to go. His dad may be an ass but he knew what he was talking about. Dean and Sam didn't care for him.

Hendrickson sighed and slapped his thighs with his hands. He wasn't going to get anywhere with this guy. And the truth was Seeth Colbert would probably only spend five to ten years in prison. Other than the slave ring his fingerprints had only been found at one other crime scene, a simple robbery where there were no weapons used or people killed. And any lawyer could easily spin his involvement in the whole slave trafficking. Truth was even he didn't know if Seeth had been a perpetrator or a victim. According to the nurse Seeth had more injuries than any other person pulled out. There were whip lacerations all down his back, two gun shot wounds in the leg, bruises of every color, and some very old injuries. The doctor said it was akin to those one would see on abuse cases. And Hendrickson had to admit the Colbert kid had shut down just like other abused children. So he took one last look at the young man and left.

**December 16****th**** at 4:30pm**

"God Bobby, am I glad to see you."

"You boys alright?"

Dean nodded, looking over at Sam who was sleeping on the bed furthest from the door. Sam's back had been infected but they had done a good job at keeping it clean. At first Sam had tried to keep Dean from seeing the wounds but Dean was a big brother and he knew how to get what he wanted. Tiredness and hunger seemed to be the only side effect for Sam now. Other than two small flesh wounds from where the prongs had touched his skin Dean was alright physically. The branding mark seemed to be healing just fine, surprisingly. Dean figured he could use it to his advantage, chicks love scars. He had also been a little unfed but after that first big meal there was no noticeable increase in his appetite. Dean told himself he was still a growing boy and needed his food.

"I see you got the Impala, how'd you manage that?" Bobby had been surprised to see the classic car sitting outside the motel. But he knew that next to Sam and Seeth there was nothing Dean cared about more so he couldn't be truly shocked that Dean had somehow gotten it back.

"I have my ways. What about you, no lasting damage?"

"Nah. They wanted to hunt me but I guess December is out of season. I'll be fine."

"Good." Dean said. He had been worried about the older hunter. It was his fault Bobby had gotten in the mess to begin with. When they had taken him away Dean hadn't known what to do. He was thrilled though when he had been able to get a hold of Bobby early this morning at his house. The man had taken the first flight back out to Georgia.

"So, have you heard anything at all about Seeth?" Bobby asked, eager to find out about the youngest Winchester.

"Yeah, we called today posing as reporters, they said he's awake. It isn't going to be easy getting in."

"Since when has that ever stopped you?" John Winchester had been full of piss and vinegar and his boys weren't any different.

Dean smiled at that but pretended to think long and hard. "I had a taxi drive me by the hospital today. The feds are finally gone. But since they know who Seeth is I'm guessing they have at least one guard standing outside his room. We should probably wait until it's dark, sneak in, take out the guard and get Seeth out. Unless of course you have any better ideas."

"Well, how about this? I pose as a fed…"

"No offense Bobby but you aren't exactly fed looking so unless you're willing to shave…"

"You're right." Bobby said quickly when heard what Dean said. He looked around and thought about Sam. "If Sam were to get fancy, put on some shades, he could pass. We'll go at five am, the guard won't care and the nurses will be just about done with their shift, too tired to do anything but agree."

"Sounds like a plan. I'll call them, pretending to be the reporter again and see if I can get an estimated time of release."

**Alright guys, sorry for the delay. School has started again so my free time is essentially gone. Good news, and bad news, is there is only one more chapter left. So I will get that up as soon as possible.**

**I want to thank ALEO for betaing, hurray she's back! And she did the last chapter as well so I want to thank her for that one too. **


	27. Chapter 27

**December 18****th**** at 5:00am**

"Hi. I'm Agent Yates; I'm here to transfer a patient named Seeth Colbert. Could you point me in the direction of the room he is located in?" Sam couldn't help but feel relieved when the nurse looked up with bags under her eyes. Most people would be horrified to learn that the workers charged with their care were forced to work so long. No one would want to know that the doctor about to perform open heart surgery or measure their medicine had been working endlessly for the past ten or twelve hours. But in his case this was a good thing. Tired nurses meant less attention and less questions, or so he hoped.

"Room 247. Take the elevator up and the room is to your left."

Sam smiled at her and put the badge away, giving her that look of understanding. Hunting supernatural baddies was more of a night time gig and they didn't always get sleep every night while on a job, just like nurses and FBI agents. He stepped into the elevator and hit the second floor button. His heart started to speed up.

He hadn't seen Seeth since their capture but his brother had to be pretty bad off for the cops to have kept him here for five days after being rescued. And then there was Seeth's mental condition to consider. Sam knew that Nick had played Dean and him against Seeth. While the man was an ass he wasn't an idiot. Nick would lie; he would use the bond between him and his brothers against Seeth. Dean had told him about what had happened in the shed, the doctoring of the tape recorder. Sam had no doubt that the tape wasn't the only thing Nick had done to convince Seeth that his brothers didn't care about him. And Sam was well aware that taking five days to mount a rescue also didn't put them in a good light. Although Seeth wouldn't see it for a while, maybe never, the five days had given Seeth time to receive medical attention that he needed and for him to heal much better than he could in some dingy motel. Besides, it also afforded Sam and Dean the plan of transferring Seeth. Even the FBI wouldn't be as cruel to transfer a prisoner without a few days rest.

Fortunately all he needed to worry about was getting Seeth out of here. Everything could be explained later. They could build that network of trust again. It would take longer but they had all the time in the world.

Sam saw the guard as soon as he walked onto the second floor. Straightening his back and assuming an all knowing attitude he walked over to the young FBI agent who was slumped over in a chair with a cup of coffee in his hand. "I've got orders to transfer this prisoner."

The agent stood up and Sam was surprised to see the man would have been as tall as him, if he were to stand up straight. Not many people were, but a long shift had worn this new recruit down. The papers were taken from him and Sam thanked God when he saw the man's eyes squint, struggling to read the paper.

"I didn't hear anything about this."

"Orders just came in, we got a hint that Colbert's men may be trying to break him out of prison and might try to get his son as well. I'm taking him to a more secure facility. The doctors have assured us he's well enough to travel." Sam was glad Dean wasn't here. For some reason Dean would laugh every time he impersonated a cop or federal agent. Dean said that he had the perfect "cop voice," whatever the hell that meant.

The guard gave him one last look but stepped aside. "Do you need any help?"

"No, I should be able to handle this one by myself. You can head home, get some sleep." Sam said. He moved toward the door but waited until the guard was standing by the elevator before he actually started to open it. Bracing himself for what he might see, or what Seeth might say, Sam stepped through the door.

Considering what could have happened Sam was more than relieved to see the room had only one IV drip and a heart rate monitor. Seeth was on the bed, awake and looking out the window. The beep sounding off his heart rhythm was steady and normal. Sam didn't say anything at first, and Seeth didn't look at him. Seeth didn't even flinch when he had opened the door. "Seeth." All of sudden he wished it was Dean doing this and not him. Then again, Dean had never been Mr. Sensitivity and this situation was going to require tact.

Seeth had heard the door open and had heard it close. But there had been a lot of that and every time it had been either a doctor, a nurse, or an FBI agent. None of whom Seeth had been interested in. He usually slept facing the door, it let him see who was coming; that came from growing up in the environment that he did it paid to be aware of your surroundings. But now he just didn't care. What was going to happen was going to happen. He had given up on gaining any control of his destiny.

Then he heard Sam's voice, at least he thought it was Sam's voice.

"Seeth." Sam stepped inches closer, afraid to get close. He felt guilty, even though he had done nothing wrong. It was his fault that Seeth had been put in this situation, that these things had happened to him. Sam hadn't protected him properly, hadn't watched him closely enough. Sometimes being a big brother wasn't so good for your ego, not when you failed.

This time Seeth reacted. It _was_ Sam, it sounded like him. Why was Sam Winchester here? They didn't care about him. They had abandoned him. But Seeth knew that voice, maybe they were here to taunt him. He closed his eyes, shutting out the father and two sons he had been watching on the playground located right outside his window. Shutting out that which he never had.

Sam didn't want to move closer, he wanted Seeth to acknowledge him on his own terms but they were on a time constraint and they couldn't take all day. So he hesitantly crossed the remaining distance to the bed and gently laid a hand on Seeth's tense shoulder. "Dean and Bobby are waiting outside in the car, we have to hurry."

Seeth shut his eyes tighter but when Sam's hand touched him he knew that it was his brother. This was no figment of his imagination. There was so much warmth and caring in that touch. But there was also doubt, guilt, why was Sam feeling guilty? Did he really have something to do with this? Had Nick been right? Seeth opened his eyes again and saw the dad chasing the smaller of the two boys. He wanted a family; he wanted to have someone to love him. Could he trust Sam and Dean again? Seeth wanted too, but he didn't want to get hurt again even more. After a few more seconds of thought Seeth decided the only way to find out was to see, he had nothing more to loose. He prepared himself quickly for the rejection that was likely to take place and then sat up in the bed, facing away from Sam.

It was a major victory when Seeth sat up and Sam quickly removed his hand. Although Seeth didn't look at him he knew that he was starting to come around. "Here, change into these. I'll wait outside, okay?" Sam handed him the clothes he had been holding. He figured bringing in a change of clothes would be okay seeing as the FBI didn't transport prisoners in hospital scrubs. But leaving him now to change was a risk all the same though. Seeth didn't have anywhere to go but Sam was putting the small momentum he had gained in jeopardy. But he also knew that there was no way in hell Seeth would change in front of him, he hadn't even done that before all this.

Three long minutes later Sam was about to go back in when the door opened and Seeth hesitantly walked out. He looked Seeth over, taking in the bruises on his face and Sam could only silently swear for all the injuries that he knew were covered by the clothes. Seeth didn't look at him though, just kept his head down. "I told them I was transferring you." Sam explained giving Seeth a warning before he gently grabbed Seeth's upper arm. It would have been hard for Sam to miss the flinch when he did so.

Seeth tried not to jerk when Sam went for his arm but a small reflexive movement made its way to the surface. He allowed himself to be led to the elevators and was grateful that Sam was keeping the pressure light on his arm. He understood that it was for appearances but unbeknownst to him Sam had grabbed Seeth in the exact place that Nick liked hold onto when he was hauling him around. But Seeth wouldn't say anything, Sam might get mad and this could all end, he could wake up from this dream. Although it was the plain white speckled tile common to any hospital Seeth forced himself to stare at the floor as if it was one of the Seven Wonders. He didn't want to ruin it by looking up and seeing the anger and disgust that might be in his brother's eyes.

Sam allowed himself to breathe again when they passed the nurse's station by the front doors. When they got outside he started walking faster and loosened up even more on his grip on Seeth's arm. He wanted to let go of his brother's arm but felt that if he did Seeth would just stop, or maybe run away. So with Seeth lagging only a pace behind Sam made a beeline for the back of the parking lot where Dean had parked the Impala.

With the pace that Sam was setting it was hard for Seeth to keep up, especially with two gun shot wounds in his leg. But the morphine was still coursing through his body and he didn't feel a thing. So he forced himself to not limp from the stiffness that remained. Weakness got you killed. Despite all his reservations and doubts about Sam and Dean's care for him he couldn't help but feel a little better instantly when he saw the Impala. When they were within ten feet he saw Bobby get out of the car and pull back the seat. Sam motioned for him to get in and Seeth slid all the way over, avoiding the other men's gazes.

There were very few times Dean got very excited over things but he almost shouted out in joy when he saw Sam and Seeth in the rearview mirror. He had to grip the steering wheel so hard that his knuckles were turning white in order not to jump out of the car and rush over to them. When Seeth got in Dean saw the bruises but it was his kid brother's body language that worried him the most. Seeth had shut down, his eyes were cast to the ground, his shoulders slumped but at the same time he was on alert, hyper aware of his surroundings and very cautious. If Dean knew anything it was his brothers. He glanced over at Sam and saw he was thinking the same thing. They had their work cut out for them but that was okay.

"Any problems?" It wouldn't even be worth addressing Seeth right now. So Dean focused on turning his car on and not crashing it trying to get it out of the ridiculously small parking spaces in the over crowded lot.

"No. Everything's good now." Sam said, hoping that Seeth would catch on to the hidden meaning.

**December 19****th**** at 7:00pm**

Dean picked up the keys to the Impala and fumbled with them for a minute. He glanced over at Seeth who was sitting on the far bed, looking at the game on television. Dean had a feeling that although Seeth was looking, he wasn't watching the game. It had been almost two days since they had gotten him out of the hospital and Seeth hadn't said a word. Sam and Dean had agreed not to push him but Dean was having a hard time waiting. They had told him that Nick had used them to get to him, that the tape had been doctored, that Sam had been threatened when he said those things to Seeth but none of it had seemed to make a difference. "Come on Seeth, let's go get dinner."

Seeth heard his name and looked over at Dean who was standing next the door, nervously playing with the keys in one hand. Sam and Dean had been trying to tip toe around him since they had "rescued" him. At least that's what they called it. Seeth had been quiet, sitting back and letting them do their thing. He listened to their arguments, that it had all been Nick playing a trick and that they had had to wait to bust him out of the hospital. It all made sense logically, Seeth's brain was shouting at him to forgive them. But his heart wasn't ready to. He had been betrayed too many times in his life and he wasn't ready for it to happen again, not now or any time in the future.

Seeth had seen the Hollywood movies, finding a family was never this complicated on the big screen. Deep down Seeth had always hoped that it was only his screwed up family that behaved this way. Then he met the Winchesters. Maybe he was cursed.

"I'll let you pick the music." Dean said, using that like steak on a hook in front of a hungry dog. 'Driver picks the music and shotgun shuts his cakehole'. Dean had said it to Sam and he had said to Seeth. Although neither one ever complained, they all shared similar tastes. Once Dean had caught Seeth listening to country music but he had figured that it was fluke. Seeth had just been flipping channels to see what was on because when Dean came around the car Seeth quickly changed the station.

Dean forced himself to continue to look into his brother's eyes. They were so empty, hopeless, and devoid of life. It had been the same way when they had first met him and just before all this had happened Dean had begun to see a little bit of that Winchester spirit. Whatever had been there was gone now. Dean felt his temper flare up every time he looked at Seeth. He wanted to go dig up Nick, bring him back to life, and torture him. The man had been fortunate to die such a quick death. Dean had had it all planned out, nice and long, slow and painful.

"Come on, you don't have a choice, you're coming." Sam was in the shower so Dean could be a little more pushy. Besides, they were only going to get dinner.

Seeth looked away and glanced back at the game. It was fourth quarter with two minutes left. He shook his head; he had let his mind drift to his prior life again. Last time he had actually taken in what was on the television had been the kickoff. Against his will Seeth got up and followed Dean out the door. He couldn't really use the excuse that he had been watching the game. As they climbed into the car and Dean started to pull out of the motel parking lot Seeth looked at the radio.

Seeth knew that Dean offering him his choice of music was a big deal. Even though they had the same taste Dean was giving him control. He glanced over at Dean and saw the nervous, anxious, desperately searching for something to say look, in his face. They did care about him, his brothers. Seeth knew that what had happened hadn't been their fault. His mind knew it; Seeth just had to get the rest of him to accept it. And this was the starting point. So Seeth hesitantly leaned over and turned the radio on, then, testing the limits of the control given him he switched to a station he only listened to in secret. When his hand left the dial he prepared himself for the disappointment to come, maybe abandonment.

"_And we're back with Alan Jackson, with Toby Keith to follow."_

When he heard that Dean almost ran off the side of the road. There was no way his baby was going to play country music. No way. He went to go change it before he heard a meek voice.

"You said I could pick." Seeth tried to sound sarcastic, tried to give Dean a grin to be proud of but he was too afraid at what might happen. He had never gone out on a shakier limb before. It had always been in his best interest to play it safe.

Dean's hand stopped mid-air and slowly came back down. He had an incredulous look on his face. He was torn. But the decision only took a second, in the end it wasn't even really a choice. He smiled at Seeth and let out a little laugh then turned back to the road. Out of the corner of his eye he could see Seeth relax and even smile a bit himself.

**December 22****nd**** at 9:00pm**

**North Carolina**

Dean set his toothbrush down on the sink, and wiped his face on the rough towel that had been washed three hundred times too many. But the stiff cotton, mildew, and even the room that was only half painted didn't bother him. For once things were starting to look up for the Winchesters. They had been able to get out of Georgia undetected, they had a hunt, and completely unpredicted by either Sam or himself Seeth was recovering fast. He had already started on the sarcasm. Dean couldn't have been happier.

So when Dean stepped out of the bathroom and saw that Seeth and Sam had already occupied the two beds he wasn't too upset. But he looked closer at Seeth's still form and realized that not only were the kid's covers down around his waist but he didn't have a shirt on. Seeth had always slept in shorts and a T-shirt. Dean and Sam always thought he was covering up a few scratches and bruises but thought that it wasn't as much of a concern as other strange habits that Seeth had. Now Dean could see why and the relaxed feeling he had just been having was gone.

There were criss-crossed half open wounds from the whipping he had received at the slave farm. They weren't as bad as Sam's but that knowledge didn't help any. Partly because Dean could see dozens of other scars up and down Seeth's back. They were healed over and had to be a couple of years old. There was one by itself off to the side that looked suspiciously like a knife wound. In addition to the myriad old scars there were two circular marks on his right shoulder, bullet wounds. The whole ugly thing was decorated with bruises that spanned from purple to black to blue. Hatred flared up again at Nick and those who had done this to his brother.

Dean looked over at Sam and sighed. He had seen his back; Dean and Sam had never been shy about hiding wounds from each other. They couldn't, if they tried infection could set in or it could jeopardize a hunt. Early on they had learned that first aid was best done right away. Once Dean had neglected to tell his dad about a deep scratch across his midsection, it had gotten infected and Dean had fainted while hunting a black dog. As punishment he had to undergo treatment without any painkillers.

Sam's back had shocked him enough and he couldn't believe that his little brother had been forced to endure the horror of being whipped. Now he had experienced first hand twice what the evil of the world could do. He took one last look at Seeth's back before covering him up quietly. Seeth moved only slightly when the covers touched him.

Stepping out of the motel room Dean pulled out his cell phone. He scrolled down his list of contacts until he found the one he was looking for. His thumb hit the send button and he waited for the phone to be picked up. When a tired voice grunted out a hello Dean responded. "I need a phone number."

**December 22****nd**** at 7:26pm**

**California**

The sound of the cap popping off the beer bottle was satisfying and felt right to Don. He had just spent his first full day back at work without having to deal with the slave case since this whole thing had been over. And now he was spending his time at his brother's house, enjoying swallowing down a cold one. Today being at work and now at his childhood home just seemed to bring back some sort of normalcy. Hendrickson had left for good two days before, extremely upset when he heard Seeth Colbert was gone.

And his team seemed to be back to normal. Megan had kept her distance for a few days and David had been a little on the mute side. Colby had been so cordial and professional that Don had thought about sending him for a psych eval. Don figured he was worried that David or Megan might squeal on him. It was obvious Megan and David had been grappling with what had happened but today they both seemed to realize that they had done the right thing. Don had shared Dean's confession of hunting supernatural baddies with both Hendrickson's investigation and his own team. He had seen the tape from the Milwaukee police station and figured the information wouldn't hurt the Winchesters.

Since then Don had done some basic investigation into the deaths that had happened around the Winchesters. Most of them were unexplained. One victim had even had her heart ripped out. The methods of killing were always different which drove Megan insane but Don found one pattern. Whenever the Winchesters were spotted in town a rise in the rate of unexplained deaths seemed to stop within a week, no matter where they went. Charlie had done more research into it than him. Don knew that Charlie was having a hard time dealing with what had happened. His innocent world had exploded and he had befriended a fugitive. Charlie was looking for reason in a world that didn't always make sense. However, Don had to admit that with the information that Sam and Dean had provided them the pattern seemed a little more clear.

The whole thing unnerved Don. He wasn't as bad as Charlie but he liked his world black and white. The possibility that there might be something more out there was more than a little scary to him. An evil he couldn't stop. An evil that needed someone like the Winchesters to combat. Don pushed the idea out of his head when he heard the phone ring. His father was out on a date with Mildred and Charlie was in the garage. That left him. "Don Eppes."

"Dean Winchester." Dean imitated in his best "FBI" voice. Sam was better at it then him though.

"Hendrickson wasn't impressed with Seeth's escape." Don didn't know what else to say at the moment so he settled for that. The call had certainly caught him off guard. There was no reason for Dean to be calling him, it was too risky. Although after Don had a moment to think it really wasn't that risky after all. This was Charlie's house phone, it wasn't set up for a trace; that would take at least a day. And even if he reported it he doubted Dean would be in the area for long. Besides, Dean was a lot of things but he wasn't stupid, he would be calling from a pay phone.

"I'll have to try harder next time." Dean didn't mind the being off topic from what he had called for. It was never easy to say what he was about to, this time was particularly hard.

"Is he alright?" If Don had asked Hendrickson or called the hospital to check on Seeth it would have been too suspicious. So he had forced himself to stay away. Besides, he wanted to distance himself from the Winchesters as much as he could. Although deep down he knew he had done the right thing Don kept looking for an excuse to tell Hendrickson what he knew. If he had seen or gotten close to Seeth he might have cracked.

"He'll live. How 'bout you and Charlie?" Dean's voice was conveying his nervousness now. He could hear the swagger and confidence crumbling away. Mentally he cursed himself. Most of the time he could have the best poker face but when he it got too intense, like when it came to his brothers, he was an open book. He could never hide emotions concerning Sam and Seeth very well.

"We'll live." Don heard the change in Dean's tone. "You didn't call me to exchange pleasantries Dean."

The abruptness startled Dean slightly and he stammered. "I…I wanted to call to say, um…"

Their profile may not be complete and it may be impossible to peg the Winchester boys as a type but Don knew that they were not the kind to say thank you very easy. But Don knew it was what Dean was trying to say. Don had been tempted to ask Colby for Dean's number so he could say thank you. It was a hard thing for him to do as well but Dean had more than likely saved Charlie's life. Don could never thank him enough. Letting him go hadn't just been a gut feeling, it had been a way of repaying Dean for giving him the only thing he had wanted for the past two weeks. "I know. Thank you too."

Dean lowered his head and sighed slightly. Now he had to actually say it. He couldn't let Don beat him at something this simple. "Thank you."

"I'll be looking for you." Don said. It was time to end this conversation. His morals and ethics were catching up to him now. If it continued for much longer he couldn't go to work without telling.

"I'll be waiting."

**Okay everyone, this is the end. I want to thank everyone who took this ride with me. Thanks for your patience when the updates got a little slow. I also want to give a HUGE THANKS to those who reviewed and I few of you did it religously so thank you thank you thank you. Those who didn't review, I hope you enjoyed the story and thanks for reading.**

**I also must give a big thanks to ALEO who helped beta many of the chapters. You were a tremendous help.**

**A sequel is planned if you guys want it and I have the basic idea formed in my head but it will be a while. I want to write most of the story so you guys aren't left without an update for a while. Anyway, let me know if you would like one and I promise to post it once I get rolling. **

**Until later, bye.**


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